Efforts are underway to “refine” the Awami League and bring it back into politics in a new form, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar alleged today.
He claimed that some people within the government, along with groups linked to Delhi, were involved in the process.
Porwar made the remarks while speaking as a special guest at a Jamaat conference in Khulna in the morning, according to a press release issued by the party’s central publicity department.
However, Porwar said the Awami League would not be able to make an easy political comeback if the anti-fascist political forces remained united.
Referring to July Uprising, he said it was not the achievement of any individual or political party but the result of Allah’s mercy and the sacrifices of students and people.
He said people had been expecting change after 15 years of political darkness.
The opportunity created through the sacrifices made during the mass uprising was aimed at building a Bangladesh free from corruption, repression, discrimination, politicisation and money laundering, he said.
Several people holding key government positions had links to leftist politics in the past, Porwar said, adding that many ministers had faced allegations of corruption.
The Jamaat leader also claimed that leftist political ideology had long influenced the country’s administration, judiciary and various state institutions. He said that Awami League had patronised such political forces for years.
“Whether one does politics as a leftist, BNP or Awami League supporter, ultimately, ideological position determines the true identity of a political force,” Porwar said.
Referring to Islami Chhatra Shibir’s success in the last Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (Ducsu) election, he said the student organisation had once been prevented from carrying out activities for students on campus but was now getting the opportunity to work.
He described Shibir’s victory in the Ducsu election as a reflection of support from young people who believe in Islamic ideals.
Jamaat Nayeb-e-Ameer ATM Azharul Islam, who was the chief guest at the conference, said it was not enough for the party to come to power; every individual must also ensure their own “victory”.
While the party’s victory could mean coming to power, he said, an individual’s ultimate victory lay in gaining Allah’s approval and attaining paradise.
He urged party workers to seek salvation in the hereafter alongside their political activities.
