{"id":1844,"date":"2025-07-20T07:40:37","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T07:40:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/07\/20\/bangladeshs-largest-islamist-party-rallies-for-fair-elections\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T07:40:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T07:40:37","slug":"bangladeshs-largest-islamist-party-rallies-for-fair-elections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/07\/20\/bangladeshs-largest-islamist-party-rallies-for-fair-elections\/","title":{"rendered":"Bangladesh\u2019s largest Islamist party rallies for fair elections"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The South Asian country is expected to head to the polls next year.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Hundreds of thousands of supporters of Bangladesh\u2019s largest Islamist party took part in a rally in the capital, Dhaka, demanding an overhaul of the electoral system.<\/p>\n

The South Asian nation is expected to head to the polls next year as it stands at a crossroads after the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Jamaat-e-Islami placed a seven-point demand on the country\u2019s interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus to ensure a free, fair and peaceful election, justice for all mass killings, essential reforms and the proclamation and implementation of a charter involving last year\u2019s mass uprising.<\/p>\n

The party also said it wants the introduction of a proportional representation system in the election.<\/p>\n

Thousands of supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami spent the night on the Dhaka University campus before the rally.<\/p>\n

On Saturday morning, braving the sweltering heat, they continued to stream towards Suhrawardy Udyan, a historical site where the Pakistani army surrendered to a joint force of India and Bangladesh on December 16, 1971, ending the nine-month war.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are here for a new Bangladesh, where Islam would be the guiding principle of governance, where good and honest people will rule the country, and there will be no corruption,\u201d said Iqbal Hossain, 40.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will sacrifice our lives, if necessary, for this cause.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018No discrimination\u2019<\/h2>\n

Some demonstrators wore T-shirts bearing the party\u2019s logo, others sported headbands inscribed with its name, while many displayed metallic badges shaped like a scale \u2013 the party\u2019s electoral symbol.<\/p>\n

Many young supporters in their 20s and 30s were also present.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnder Jamaat-e-Islami, this country will have no discrimination. All people will have their rights. Because we follow the path of the holy book \u2013 Quran,\u201d said Mohidul Morsalin Sayem, a 20-year-old student.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf all the Islamist parties join hands, soon, nobody will be able to take power from us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The party\u2019s chief, Shafiqur Rahman, said the country\u2019s struggle in 2024 was to eliminate \u201cfascism\u201d, but this time, there would be another fight against corruption and extortion.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow will the future Bangladesh look like? There will be another fight \u2026 We will do whatever is necessary and win that fight,\u201d Rahman said.<\/p>\n

\"Bangladesh\"
Jamaat-e-Islami party members rally at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka [Munir Uz Zaman\/AFP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After Bangladesh\u2019s independence, Jamaat, which sided with Pakistan during Bangladesh\u2019s war of independence in 1971, was banned.<\/p>\n

It later re-emerged and registered its best electoral performance in 1991 when it secured 18 seats.<\/p>\n

The party also joined a coalition government in 2001, but failed to build lasting popular support.<\/p>\n

While Prime Minister Hasina <\/a>was in power from 2009 until she was toppled in student-led protests last year and fled to India, top leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami were either executed or jailed on charges of crimes against humanity and other serious crimes in 1971.<\/p>\n

Last month, the Supreme Court restored the party\u2019s registration, paving the way for its participation in elections slated for next April.<\/p>\n

In a statement on X, Hasina\u2019s Awami League party reacted sharply to Yunus\u2019s government allowing Saturday\u2019s rally.<\/p>\n

The statement said the move \u201cmarks a stark betrayal with the national conscience and constitutes a brazen act of undermining millions of people \u2013 dead and alive \u2013 who fought against the evil axis [in 1971]\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Yunus-led administration has banned the Awami League, and Hasina has been in exile in India since last August. She faces charges of crimes against humanity.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The South Asian country is expected to head to the polls next year. Hundreds of thousands of supporters of Bangladesh\u2019s largest Islamist party took part in a rally in the capital, Dhaka, demanding an overhaul of the electoral system. The South Asian nation is expected to head to the polls next year as it stands … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1845,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1844\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}