Says Mahfuj: 'I was cornered in the government due to my opposition to Jamaat'

Mahfuj Alam, a former advisor to the interim government, has claimed that he was "cornered" while discharging his duties in the government due to his ideological opposition to far right Jamaat-Shibir parties. At the same time, he alleged that he has been facing personal attacks, malicious campaigns, and death threats for a long time.

On his Facebook handle, Mahfuj Alam wrote, "Have I spoken out against any pro-July individual to this day? No. However, 80 to 90 percent of the vitriol against me as an individual has come from self-proclaimed pro-July individuals, specifically from Jamaat-Shibir, NCP, and the far-right."

He added, "Have I spoken out against the political ideology of Jamaat-Shibir and the far-right from an ideological standpoint? Yes. But is the pro-July force comprised solely of Jamaat?"

He also alleged that questioning Jamaat's politics is being treated as an offense. In his words, "If questioning Jamaat's politics regarding the denial or downplaying of 1971 is an offense, then individuals and institutions that question the liberals, leftists, and seculars among the self-proclaimed pro-July faction must also be held responsible."

Although he is being blamed for creating division due to his ideological opposition to Jamaat, the former adviser expressed his firm stance on the matter. He wrote, "If I am held responsible for division based on my ideological opposition to Jamaat, then I am not the least bit perturbed by this division or by my efforts to save July from falling into the trap of Jamaat-Shibir's exclusive narrative."

In his post, Mahfuj Alam directly claimed, "During the tenure of the interim government, I was cornered within the administration for my opposition to Jamaat-Shibir. I remained silent to save my own life and honor."

Referring to the personal attacks, he said, "Instead of debating policies and ideologies, what does it indicate when Jamaat-Shibir, NCP, and far-right elements constantly launch personal attacks against a single individual for nearly two years?"

Alleging that he is still being targeted even after leaving his government position, Mahfuj Alam wrote, "I have not held any responsibility, have not been an MP, and have not been a leader for the past six months. Yet, why does individual Mahfuj repeatedly become the target of this Jamaat-Shibir, NCP, and the far-right?"

In the postscript of his post, he claimed, "Shibir bots and activists are repeatedly demanding my hanging. They are wishing for my death. They even symbolically slaughtered my effigy once. They crossed the line of making me a target for execution a long time ago."

Furthermore, criticizing the attempts to portray him as the "mastermind behind the destruction of July," Mahfuj Alam said, "July is not an individual's toy that one person can destroy. By making such statements, you are actually making July look cheap and ridiculous."

Calling for an end to personal attacks, he wrote, "Let the personal attacks by Jamaat-Shibir, NCP, and the far-right stop. I hope we can move past slurs and personal attacks to debate policy and ideology, so that we can build a better Bangladesh."