Acting Ameer of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and former lawmaker Professor Mujibur Rahman has issued the following statement on 28th July, 2023 protesting and condemning the police’s obstruction against Jamaat’s pre-declared processions in all metropolitan cities and the arrest of around 50 Jamaat leaders and activists from various places of the country.
On behalf of Jamaat-e-Islami, 3 days of programs were declared on last 24th July to fulfill three specific demands. Accordingly, applications were submitted by all districts and city level organizations to the respective administration seeking assistance to implement the declared programs. However, today while implementing peaceful processions in Chittagong, police attacked the demonstrators and arrested 21 from the spot. From a midnight drive on 27th and 28th July, police arrested 5 from Bogra city, 7 from Jessore, 11 from Bagerhat, 4 from Naogaon and 3 from Khulna city. Police also vandalized and ransacked the houses during these raids.
Political programs are inevitable for holding a free, fair and credible election. But police are creating obstruction in order to foil the possibilities of a participatory election. By subduing the dissident voices, police proved that they do not want a participatory election. But the government should keep it in mind that the people will not accept another farcical election this time like the election of 2014 and 2018.
Acting Ameer stated that police are the staff of the state. They do not belong to any party The countrymen expect them to play fair and neutral role. We still hope that the administration will cooperate to implement our pre-declared programs including peaceful processions in the districts and rally in the capital Dhaka on 1st August. The countrymen also took to the street against the tortures and repressions of the government. They are united to press home their just demands. So, I am urging the concerned authorities to stop oppression and to release all detained leaders and activists of Jamaat-e-Islami immediately.
Basic demand of the people is to arrange a free, fair credible and participatory election and to meet such demands they are waiting for immediate stepdown of this government, dismissal of the existing parliament, to establish a caretaker government and subsequently to hand over the power to those government. I am calling upon the government to take a wise initiative by fulfilling all these demands immediately.
