JS sees heated debate over President’s legitimacy

A heated political exchange unfolded in Parliament on Thursday as National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener Nahid Islam demanded the removal and arrest of President Mohammed Shahabuddin, alleging corruption, political bias and failure during the July 2024 uprising while Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury strongly defended the constitutional role of the presidency, stressing that the head of state is an institution that must be respected regardless of personal views.

Speaking during the discussion on the motion of thanks on the President’s address in the 13th Jatiya Sangsad, Nahid launched a scathing attack on the President, rejecting both the speech and the institution itself, while reiterating longstanding allegations tied to Shahabuddin’s previous roles and actions.

Firstly, the National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener and Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam on Thursday took the floor of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad to demand the removal and arrest of President Mohammed Shahabuddin, delivering one of the sharpest attacks on the head of state since the new parliament began its first session.

Speaking during the discussion on the motion of thanks on the president’s speech, Nahid declared that he had neither listened to nor read the address, saying his party had rejected both the speech and the occasion itself.

“There is no moral ground for this president to remain at Bangabhaban or to address parliament,” he said.

“We made it very clear that this president must be removed and arrested.

He no longer has any right to stay at Bangabhaban or to come here and deliver a speech.”

Nahid, who represents Dhaka-11 in the new parliament, laid out a string of allegations against the president — whom he pointedly referred to by his personal name, “Chuppu” — spanning his career before ascending to the presidency.

The NCP convener alleged that during his tenure as an Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) commissioner, Shahabuddin was tasked with securing convictions against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Rahman, giving a clean chit to the Awami League over Padma Bridge-related corruption allegations, and dropping cases against Sheikh Hasina and other Awami League leaders filed during the Fakhruddin-Moeenuddin caretaker government era.

Nahid further alleged that a judicial inquiry commission led by Shahabuddin in 2009 had placed blame on BNP leaders and activists for post-election violence against minorities in 2001 — findings he claimed were later exploited politically by the Awami League both domestically and internationally.

He also accused the president of involvement in alleged irregularities in the banking sector, including at Islami Bank, and held him morally responsible for the deaths during the July 2024 uprising, describing his silence at that time as complicity with “fascism.”

“Students had demanded the president’s removal following the July uprising, but BNP had then supported him citing constitutional continuity,” Nahid noted. “Now that there is an elected government, why is he still not being removed?”

Nahid has previously argued that President Shahabuddin “did not take any effective measures to prevent the mass killings in July” and that as guardian of the state, he “remained silent and inactive at that time.”

In contrast, Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury on Thursday said anyone who believes in constitutional democracy must respect its institutions, noting that the President is one such institution.

Speaking during the thanksgiving motion on the President’s address in Parliament, he said he does not have any personal attachment to President Mohammed Shahabuddin.

The minister made the remarks while responding to comments made by NCP MP Nahid Islam regarding the President.

“Another member has made several remarks about the President. But the President is an institution — he is not merely an individual,” Khosru said.

Referring to Nahid Islam, he added, “Take Nahid for example. He took his oath of office from the President. If he did not respect the President, why did he take the oath?”