Staff Reporter :
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday said that Jamaat-e-Islami did nothing to oust the fascist Hasina regime.
“Jamaat had shown no significant presence in the struggle against the “authoritarian Sheikh Hasina regime over the past decade,” Fakhrul said.
The BNB Secretary General also urged Jamaat-e-Islami not to deceive or confuse the public by suggesting that voting for a particular party ensures entry to heaven, saying Islam rejects the exploitation of religion for political objectives.
“It is unacceptable to confuse or misguide people… Those who claim that a Jamaat nomination is somehow a passport to Jannat should show where such a thing is written.
Islam never permits the use of religion as a political instrument,” he said.
Fakhrul explained that he raised the matter because such statements are generating unnecessary confusion among the public, and the issue must be clearly addressed.
The programme was organised by a platform of mosque-based mass education caretakers under the Islamic Foundation at the Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh.
In a pointed reference to Jamaat, he said the party has long struggled to firmly establish its place in national politics.
“It was our party founder Ziaur Rahman who first gave them the space to enter mainstream politics… later they collaborated with us, and we with them.
But over the last ten years, we have not witnessed any meaningful effort from them to resist the fascist regime,” he remarked.
He further said that he had heard reports of Jamaat’s student wing, Chhatra Shibir, infiltrating Dhaka University’s Chhatra League by posing as its activists. “We cannot and do not engage in such tactics. We have always fought openly, boldly and on the front lines.”
Fakhrul recalled the sacrifices made by BNP leaders and activists, including killings, enforced disappearances, torture and imprisonment.
He criticised a political party that kept insisting, “PR must be ensured, and without PR there will be no election,” and making loud threats. “Now their tone has noticeably softened,” he said.
The BNP leader noted that during the Hasina era, his party placed several reform proposals, demonstrating its sincerity in restructuring the state and strengthening democratic institutions.
He said BNP signed the July charter prepared by the National Consensus Commission after discussions with political parties.
However, Fakhrul regretted that the commission later submitted recommendations that included points not part of the agreed and signed document.
“This was not proper. They should simply have submitted the points agreed upon by all the parties,” he said.
Fakhrul added that the July-August mass uprising-which claimed nearly 1,500 lives-has created a new opportunity to rebuild the nation.
“Let us unite on at least one principle: that a credible, participatory and fair election must be held so we may form a genuinely democratic government and parliament.
Only in such a parliament can national issues be debated and resolved, ensuring decisions reflect the will of the people,” he said.
He lamented that despite the country having large numbers of Muslims, madrasas, mosques and scholars, corruption, injustice and illicit financial activities continue to increase.
He argued that strengthening moral education could help reduce murder, robbery and crime.
“Moral values are shaped by madrasas, schools, teachers and families-these institutions must be reinforced.”
He called for broader national dialogue on how religion and ethics can be applied more effectively in society.
Describing BNP as a liberal democratic party, Fakhrul said that without democracy, no religious group or social class can secure its rights.
He accused Sheikh Hasina’s government of depriving citizens of both their right to vote and their freedom to practise their faith over the last 15-16 years.
Fakhrul also criticised religious scholars who conferred the title “Mother of Qawmi” on Sheikh Hasina, saying such designations naturally invite questions.
He said the Awami League has destroyed state institutions by filling them with party loyalists.
If BNP returns to power, he pledged, it will restore the Islamic Foundation as a full state institution and bring it under the revenue budget.
