Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman has issued the following statement on 3 December 2020 urging the concerned authorities to be refrained from all types of anti-Islamic activities including placing statues across the country.

Bangladesh is a Muslim majority country. Constitutionally, Islam is the state religion of this country. The religious and pious people of the country have been trying to lead their lives as per the moral spirit and ethical values of Islam. We are observing with great concern, a new debate has been created in recent times centering some anti-Islamic initiatives of the government including placing statues in different places. Some vested quarters are propagating that, sculpture and statues are not the same thing. But the mainstream religious leaders have clearly asserted that statue and sculpture is same. Creating statues is prohibited in Islam. Islam considers such act as sharing partnership and divinity with Almighty Allah. On the contrary, who are trying to define it as an art, if they can then they should place argument and evidence from holy Quran and Hadith in this regard to eliminate mass confusion. But they will never be able to do so. Some wrong-headed people are terming Baitullah as a sculpture which is nothing but inexcusable exaggeration. Some of them also trying to give some references from the history. We are of the view that, making and placing statues are not allowed in all conditions and such acts must be rejected and refuted. As a part of rituals, if the people of other faiths want to preserve statue or idol in their religious establishments, it is certainly allowed. But Islam does not give provision to place statue in open spaces. The people of Islam will not accept any effort of the vested sections of giving validity to such ill-deeds based on some lame excuses.

According to Islamic rules and regulations, to create any types of statue and idols are major sin and it is strictly prohibited. Islam, with strong determination, bans buying or selling of statues even the collection of such items. Allah says in the Quran, “"And they have said (to each other), 'Abandon not your gods: Abandon neither Wadd nor Suwa', neither Yaguth nor Ya'uq, nor Nasr';"They have already misled many; and grant Thou no increase to the wrong- doers but in straying (from their mark)." (Sura Nooh: Verse 23-24)

Regarding the verse, the companion of the prophet, Hazrat Abdullah Ibn Abbas (Ra) said, “these were some great people of the era of Prophet Noah. After their death, Satans instigated others to place statues in their names. The contemporary people followed Satan’s directions. Though those generations initially did not make those statues for idolatry but gradually the very action of idolatry became their trend.” (Bukhari: 4920)

Such stance and position of Quran and Hadith clearly demonstrate that construction or placement of statue is not allowed in Islam. So, whoever is creating unnecessary debate, they are doing wrong. It is better to respect public view. We are urging the concerned authorities to stay away from anti-Islamic activities including placing statues in the name of sculpture.