Activists are calling it a grotesque mockery of Bangladesh’s sacred history, as Jamaat-e-Islami—a party steeped in 1971 war crimes and militant fanaticism—has brazenly thrust itself into the national spotlight, desecrating the Shaheed Minar and eroding the very soul of Bengali nationalism.
The rise of this venomous outfit, emboldened under the Yunus regime’s lax oversight, poses an existential danger to the Liberation War’s indomitable spirit and the secular Bengali identity forged in blood and defiance. As death-row war criminals parade as parliamentarians and party leaders, the nation watches in horror as the ghosts of 1971 are resurrected to haunt our future.
The nadir came on February 21, International Mother Language Day, when Jamaat Amir Dr. Shafiqur Rahman led a contemptible procession to the Shaheed Minar—the hallowed monument to the 1952 Language Martyrs.
Flanking him was ATM Azharul Islam, a convicted war criminal sentenced to death for his atrocities during the Liberation War, yet shamelessly freed after the August 5, 2024, power shift. Azhar, now Jamaat’s Naib-e-Amir and an elected MP, embodies the party’s unrepentant betrayal of Bangladesh. Joining this parade of infamy were Mir Ahmed Bin Kasem Arman, son of executed war criminal Mir Quasem Ali, and Nahid Islam, a covert Shibir operative masquerading as convener of the Yunus-backed National Citizens’ Party (NCP).
This spectacle ignited righteous fury among pro-Liberation forces. As Jamaat’s entourage attempted to “pay respects,” outraged youths unleashed a barrage of slogans: “Razakar, Razakar!” “Agents of ’71, beware!” “Razakars of ’71, leave Bangladesh now!”
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In a pathetic retort, Jamaat cadres chanted “Language soldier Ghulam Azam, accept our salute!”—invoking their former Amir, a notorious Razakar overlord who later regretted participating in the 1952 Language Movement, declaring Urdu the “common language of Muslims” in the subcontinent and dismissing Bengali aspirations as a “mistake.”
The confrontation turned volatile, forcing NCP leaders like opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam and Secretary Akhtar Hossain to scurry back to their vehicles amid the chaos.
Jamaat’s hypocrisy knows no bounds. Historically, a jihadist entity hell-bent on imposing Maulana Maududi’s Sharia law through a democratic facade or shadowy intrigue, the party collaborated with Pakistani forces in the 1971 genocide, slaughtering intellectuals and freedom fighters.
Banned post-Liberation, it slithered back under General Ziaur Rahman’s regime, amending its constitution repeatedly to survive scrutiny. To this day, Jamaat has never apologised for its war crimes, yet now postures as “Bangladesh-friendly” by co-opting Ekushey narratives online—a vile attempt to whitewash their anti-Bengali legacy.
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Compounding the outrage, Jamaat announced its new central committee on February 20, entrenching war criminals and extremists in leadership. Professor Mia Golam Parwar—infamous for his role in suppressing student movements—reclaims the Secretary General post. Four Naib-e-Amirs include Azharul Islam (MP), Professor Mujibur Rahman (MP), Dr. Syed Abdullah Md. Taher (MP), and Maulana A.N.M. Shamsul Islam. Seven Assistant Secretaries General feature figures like Maulana ATM Masum and Maulana Rafiqul Islam Khan (MP). The 21-member Central Executive Council is a rogues’ gallery: war crime convicts turned MPs like Azharul Islam, Mujibur Rahman, and others, including Saiful Alam Khan Milon (MP) and Dr. Shafiqul Islam Masud (MP).
This “committee,” formed in a virtual Majlis-e-Shura meeting chaired by Shafiqur Rahman, divides the country into 14 regions for “organisational acceleration”—code for spreading their toxic ideology. With 88 members in the Central Working Council (21 women) and 59 in the Central Majlis-e-Shura (17 women), Jamaat is fortifying its grip, even establishing a five-member Central Election Commission led by Maulana ATM Masum.
Such audacity is no accident. Under the Yunus interim regime, Jamaat’s resurgence has been turbocharged by external meddlers: Pakistan’s ISI funnels covert support to revive Razakar networks, while Turkish influences peddle pan-Islamic agendas that erode Bengali secularism. The regime’s failure to curb this extremism—allowing war criminals to roam free, win elections, and infiltrate parliament—has unleashed a cancer that devours the Liberation War’s ethos of freedom, equality, and linguistic pride.
This is an abomination in Bangabandhu’s Bangladesh—a land baptised in the blood of three million martyrs. Jamaat’s rise isn’t progress; it’s regression to the dark days of 1971, threatening to supplant Bengali identity with fundamentalist dogma. Pro-Liberation voices, including Awami League supporters, vow to dismantle this menace, ensuring every war criminal faces justice. The nation must awaken: Jamaat’s infiltration is a dagger at the heart of our sovereignty. Failure to excise it will doom the spirit of ’71 and ’52 to oblivion.
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