Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s Acting Ameer and former member of the parliament Professor Mujibur Rahman has issued the following statement on 30th December 2022 congratulating the city dwellers for making Jamaat called mass processions program successful which had been declared to press home 10-point demands including holding the election under a caretaker regime and immediate release of Jamaat Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman.
I am hailing and congratulating the city dwellers for making Jamaat called mass processions program successful. As a part of the program, Dhaka city north and south have brought out separate processions. By interfering in these pre-declared processions, the government has violated citizens’ democratic rights.
We have been repeatedly saying that Jamaat-e-Islami believes in systematic, democratic, and peaceful political programs. By creating obstructions in these programs, the constitution has been ignored, and simultaneously crore of people’s rights have been violated. We have observed that, immediately after the commencement of the procession, some provocative police intervened in the program and arrested hundreds of party activists. Despite the provocation, Jamaat materialized the mass procession program peacefully. The main obligation of the law enforcers is to assist in implementing people’s democratic rights. But instead of doing so, the law enforcers have made the situation volatile by obstructing the program and falsely accused the Jamaat activists of creating violence. Jamaat never engages in the politics of violence.
We further want to remind the government that Jamaat is a legitimate democratic and systematic political party. Except for some recent farcical elections, Jamaat had taken part in all previous elections and had representations in the parliament as well. Jamaat-nominated candidates also bagged millions of votes. The party which owns the support of hundreds of thousands of people; they will not be allowed to exercise their political rights, it is not a normal act. This can never be a democratic approach. A democratic force can never be subdued through repression and torture. Jamaat has implemented all its political programs peacefully and will continue to do so. But some provocative members of law enforcement agencies have adopted the wrong tactics of misguiding people by launching false propaganda against Jamaat-e-Islami. However, the countrymen do not believe in such propaganda. I am urging the law enforcers to be refrained from playing such a vindictive role in the future.
According to the constitution of Bangladesh, all citizens have the due right to hold processions and rallies. Please do not take a stance against the citizens and the constitution by overruling these rights. We are demanding immediate unconditional release of Jamaat Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman and other detained leaders and activists. Besides, we are calling upon the government to accept Jamaat-e-Islami declared 10-point demands.