In a move that spits on the graves of three million martyrs and the honour of hundreds of thousands of raped and tortured women, the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government has silently presided over the full political rehabilitation of one of the most notorious Al-Badr commanders of 1971: ATM Azharul Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday, November 29, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami officially swore in<\/a> ATM Azhar\u2014the former commander of the Rangpur Al-Badr death squad\u2014as its Nayeb-e-Ameer (Deputy Chief). Less than six months after a highly controversial Supreme Court verdict acquitted him of all charges of genocide, murder, rape, and torture committed during the Liberation War, the man once sentenced to death for crimes against humanity now stands second only to Ameer Shafiqur Rahman in the hierarchy of the country\u2019s largest Islamist party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is not justice. This is the systematic undoing of the sacrifices of 1971.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From Death Row to Deputy Chief in Six Months<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Let the timeline speak for itself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n – December 30, 2014: The International Crimes Tribunal sentences ATM Azhar to death for six charges of crimes against humanity in Rangpur, including leading the massacre of intellectuals, abduction and murder of Hindus, and systematic rape. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – October 31, 2019: The Appellate Division upholds the death sentence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – August 5, 2024: Sheikh Hasina falls. Jamaat immediately demands Azhar\u2019s release. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – May 27, 2025: A new seven-judge bench of the Appellate Division, in an unprecedented move, overturns both previous verdicts, acquits him on all counts, and declares the earlier trials a \u201cgross miscarriage of justice.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n – May 28, 2025: Azhar walks free after 13 years, garlanded by Jamaat leaders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – November 29, 2025: He takes the oath as Nayeb-e-Ameer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No other acquitted 1971 war criminal has been elevated so rapidly to the number-two position in Jamaat\u2019s national leadership. The message is unmistakable: under the Yunus regime, collaboration with Pakistani occupation forces is no longer a stain\u2014it is a qualification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Outrageous Revisionism in Broad Daylight<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n If Azhar\u2019s rehabilitation were merely procedural, it would already be shameful. But he has gone further\u2014openly insulting the very idea of Bangladesh\u2019s independence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Azhar\u2019s acquittal: Awami League terms it dark, disgraceful chapter in history<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Pro-Yunus citizens\u2019 group condemns acquittal of razakar Azhar<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Jamaat-Led Yunus Regime: Victory Day parade cancelled for second year<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Speaking at a Jamaat rally in Mohammadpur on November 28, the newly minted Nayeb-e-Ameer declared:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPolitical opponents call Jamaat anti-independence and anti-Liberation War. In reality, Jamaat is the only force that truly stands for independence\u2026 Proof? Despite all persecution, Jamaat leaders never fled the country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He then sneered at Sheikh Hasina (\u201cShe who boasted \u2018Sheikh\u2019s daughter does not flee\u2019 fled herself\u201d) and proclaimed: \u201cIslam is the only guarantee of this country\u2019s independence, sovereignty, democracy, and rule of law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n These are not the words of a reformed man seeking reconciliation. These are the words of an unrepentant collaborator who still believes Pakistan should have won in 1971.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every Bengali who lost a father, mother, brother, or sister to Al-Badr bullets in Rangpur knows exactly what Azhar\u2019s \u201cindependence\u201d means: independence from Bangladesh itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Yunus Regime\u2019s Complicity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The interim government has not uttered a single word of protest. No statement of concern. No condemnation of Jamaat\u2019s decision. No reassurance to the millions of families of martyrs that their sacrifice is still honoured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Worse, key institutions appear captured:<\/p>\n\n\n\n – The judiciary that acquitted Azhar did so under a chief justice appointed after August 5.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n – The prosecutor who once defended Jamaat leaders now heads the International Crimes Tribunal that is supposed to try 1971 crimes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – Law Adviser Asif Nazrul publicly celebrated Azhar\u2019s acquittal as a triumph of the \u201cJuly Revolution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is not neutrality. This is active collaboration with forces that wanted Bangladesh strangled at birth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Promise of Future Justice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Let no one be under any illusion: the current whitewashing will not stand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Azhar\u2019s acquittal: Chhatra Shibir slammed for attack on protesters<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n How Mufti Imran is revealing the danger of extremism on social media<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n