Jamaat chief warns of street protests over election mandate, reforms

Shafiqur Rahman, the chief of Jamaat-e-Islami and leader of the opposition in parliament, has issued a stern warning: his party will take to the streets if the mandate from the recent national election is not respected and promised constitutional reforms are not enacted. Speaking to journalists in Sylhet, Rahman emphasized that frustrating the election's verdict would prevent the building of a sustainable social order.

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If this verdict is frustrated, no sustainable social order can ever be built in this country. If parliament is curtailed, there will be no option but to take to the streets.

Rahman claimed that 68.6 percent of voters participated, making their preference clear. He shared that voters expressed confusion and resentment, questioning how another party could form the government when they had voted for Jamaat. "We voted for you but another party formed the government – how is that?" he recounted people asking.

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But after the election, ordinary people came to us and said that we voted for you but another party formed the government – how is that? They asked us why we accepted it. There was a little resentment towards us.

The Jamaat chief stated his party entered parliament with pledges to both the people and Allah, promising to stand by voters regardless of the outcome. He reiterated the party's intention to cooperate on positive initiatives while protesting against wrongdoing. Rahman also criticized the ruling party for breaking its pre-election promise to accept referendum results, questioning why referendums, previously permissible, were now deemed unconstitutional.

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If referendums were permissible then, how are they impermissible now?

Addressing border tensions, Rahman advised against reacting to provocative statements, warning that constant responses could lead to daily conflict. He asserted that while compromise on national interests is unacceptable, the country would not cede its land, even if it meant facing hardship.

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On the question of independence and sovereignty, there is no compromise. We may eat less and have less, that is fine. But there is no question of signing our land over to anyone.