Leader of the Opposition and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman today said his party was banned during the rule of the ousted Awami League regime for “refusing to accept hegemony”.

"Our only fault was that we did not accept hegemony," he said while speaking as the chief guest at a meeting with the families of those martyred and injured in the July Uprising, held at the Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh (IDEB) in Dhaka.

He also claimed that Jamaat had been blamed for the recent youth movement in India.

“You can see young people and students taking to the streets in India. The government there has said that Jamaat-e-Islami instigated the movement. Why are they so afraid of us?

"One country had managed to put almost every political party in Bangladesh in its pocket, except one. That party is Jamaat-e-Islami. That is where the problem lies," he said.

Recalling Jamaat's role during the July movement, Shafiqur said the party had supported the students from the outset but had never claimed credit for the movement's success.

"We never said that so many of our members had been martyred or that the movement was led by us. Instead, we stood by the families of the martyrs and worked to assist the injured," he said.

Referring to those martyred and injured during the uprising, he said most of those who lost their lives came from marginalised communities and many were not students.

"If we betray them in the new Bangladesh that has emerged from their sacrifice, will Allah forgive us? We have to answer to the families of the martyrs and to those injured in July," he added.

Criticising the current situation, the Jamaat chief alleged that "shameless politicisation" was taking place across universities, district councils, banks, insurance companies, corporations, and public and private institutions.

"Competent and patriotic people are being removed and corrupt individuals are being appointed to key positions in an attempt to establish a paradise of corruption," he said.

Questioning whether those who had sacrificed their lives or suffered permanent injuries had done so merely to replace one ruling group with another, Shafiqur said, "They wanted systemic change. But now it seems that we are once again entering the same dark alley."

Addressing the government, he said, "Mistakes can be made by individuals, political parties and governments. But we believe that you have broken the promises you made to the nation and failed to uphold the trust placed in you. Come back, accept these demands, and stay on the right path."

"The nation is facing a severe crisis, and people want to stand by you in rebuilding the country," he added.

Shafiqur also said Jamaat would never retreat from its demand for justice for those killed during the July Uprising and for the rights of those who were injured.

"Whether justice comes today or 50 years later, it will one day be delivered on the soil of Bangladesh," he said.

“We are being intimidated, but we fear none but Allah. We will continue to speak out against injustice. No one will be able to silence us when it comes to defending the rights of the people,” he said.

The event, organised by the north and south units of Dhaka city Jamaat, was chaired by Nurul Islam Bulbul, chief of the party's Dhaka South unit.