BNP would not have come to power without mass uprising

Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman has said that if the July mass uprising had not taken place and people had not sacrificed their lives, the BNP would not be enjoying power today.

He said the BNP has forgotten these events, although it had already shown forgetfulness earlier. He added that when families of martyrs were grieving in pain, the party did not have time to visit them. Instead, after the August 5 uprising, the BNP demanded elections on August 7 in an attempt to come to power.

He made the remarks on Saturday at a rally at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka. The rally was organized by Jamaat-e-Islami in honor of families of July martyrs and July fighters.

Shafiqur Rahman added that those who were abroad were able to return to the country because of the revolution. Without it, he said, they would not have even been able to think of coming back to Bangladesh.

The top Jamaat leader said two votes had taken place. One vote went in their favor, which they accepted. In another vote, 70 percent of the people supported reforms, which, he said, the BNP does not accept—a matter he described as shameful. He added that the day the verdict of that 70 percent vote is implemented, fascism would truly be removed from the country. He also said the BNP is opposing its own 31-point program and party manifesto, and it appears to have lost even the understanding of its own position.

The Jamaat Ameer said that some now claim to be the masterminds of various movements or that certain leaders made the movements successful. He dismissed these claims as false. He said they do not deny anyone’s legitimate contribution and that everyone participated in the movement. However, he said they could not reach the shore and their boat remained floating at sea, while the heroes of the July movement brought the boat to the dock and showed the nation the path to liberation. He urged people to learn to respect and love them and not to belittle them.

Addressing the BNP, the opposition leader said that in recent days there have been incidents in several educational institutions, including the University of Dhaka, and even inside police stations, places meant for legal protection, where elected DUCSU representatives were attacked. He said the message was clear. The day they rejected the referendum result, he had said that the BNP had begun its journey toward fascism, adding that this was fascism.

Shafiqur Rahman says, ‘No ‘adubhai’ or ‘dadubhai’ should go to educational institutions and dominate our children. We do not want to see this culture. If you do not stop it, remember, July was not only in 2024. July exists every year. That July will return again, Inshallah, and then fascism will finally be buried.’

Calling on the government to accept the referendum result, the Jamaat Ameer made it clear that they must respect the people’s mandate. He said they accept the 70 percent public verdict. If the referendum result is not implemented, the opposition’s struggle will continue both inside parliament and in the streets. He added that the people will ultimately win this struggle.

At the rally, speaking on behalf of martyr families, Rokeya Begum, mother of martyr Jabir Ibrahim and a reserved women’s seat candidate for Jamaat, said the implementation of the July charter is the demand of martyr families and those injured in the mass uprising. She said she would raise the issue of implementing the July charter in parliament and highlight the problems faced by families of July martyrs and the injured.

July fighter Atikul Islam, who lost his arm in the mass uprising, said the 70 percent public mandate must be implemented immediately. He warned that those who try to strangle this mandate would have to flee power. He added that while Sheikh Hasina had managed to escape, others would not get that opportunity.

Others who spoke at the rally included Opposition Chief Whip and NCP Convener Nahid Islam, LDP Chairman Colonel (Retd.) Oli Ahmed, Jamaat senior Nayeb-e-Ameer ATM Azharul Islam, Assistant Secretary General Rafiq-ul-Islam Khan and Hamidur Rahman Azad, Khelafat Majlis senior Nayeb-e-Ameer Shakhawat Hossain, AB Party General Secretary Asaduzzaman Fuad, Bangladesh Labour Party Chairman Mostafizur Rahman (Iran), Bangladesh Nizame Islam Party Nayeb-e-Ameer Muklesur Rahman Kasemi, Bangladesh Development Party Chairman Anwarul Islam, Jamaat Dhaka South Ameer Nurul Islam Bulbul, Dhaka North Ameer Selim Uddin, Jamaat Central Executive Committee member Jasim Uddin Sarkar, Workers Welfare Federation President Atikur Rahman, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir President Nurul Islam Saddam, JnUCSU VP Riazul Islam, and JUCSU GS Mazharul Islam.