Bangladesh News

Eminent citizens of the country yesterday expressed concern over the deal signed between Awami League’s (AL’s) and Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish on Saturday.

Condemning the deal, the eminent citizens in a joint statement said the people who had issued fatwa (religious decree) before would return with a renewed zeal and drag the country into the dark ages, if the laws were passed according to the deal. They said it would make room for a parallel legal system.

The issuing of fatwa, a key point of the five-point accord, was banned earlier by a High Court (HC) rule. However, the Appellate Division has placed a stay order against the rule. The eminent citizens said the HC handed down the judgment since oppressive incidents had occurred in the country due to the issuing of fatwa.

They said the other pledges that the AL had made to the Khelafat Majlish in the accord would give the constitution a religious hue, if laws were passed according to it.

They said the deal would encourage discrimination against the minority communities.

They claimed the BNP government had taken steps to destroy the education system by treating degrees and certificates of Qaomi madrasas as equal to degrees and certificates of other institutions. If the Qaomi madrasa was recognised according to the signed deal, it would surely damage the education system of Bangladesh, the statement added.

The pact goes against freethinkers, liberals, secularists and democrats and it contradicts with the AL ideology, the eminent citizens observed.

The signatories to the statement include Prof Kabir Chowdhury, Prof Khan Sarwar Murshid, Prof Rehman Sobhan, Ajoy Roy, Dr Muzaffer Ahmed, Hena Das, Major General (retd) CR Dutta, Dr Hamida Hossain, Sultana Kamal, Ayesha Khanam, AZ Abdul Ali, Tasmima Hossain, Hafizuddin Khan, ASF Shahjahan, Syed Manzur Elahi, Dr Mahmuda Islam, Dr Jamal Nazrul Islam, Major General (retd) Amin Ahmed Chowdhury, Md Shafiullah (Bir Uttam), Ibrahim Khaled, Ali Zaker, Sara Zaker, Major General Harun-ur-Rashid (Bir Uttam), Sara Hossain, Dr Abul Baraqat, Dr Ajoy Roy, Ferdousi Priyobhasini, Dr SA Samad, Kamal Lohani, Dr Hayat Mamud, Shaheen Anam, Mahmud Salam, Prof Jatin Sarkar, Supriyo Chatterjee, Dr Rawnak Jahan, Tareque Ali, Khushi Kabir, Rafiqun Nabi, Robiul Haque, Dr Sadeka Halim, Mamunur Rashid, Sanjib Drong, Selina Hossain, Rajia Samad, Dr Sonia Amin, Shamim Akhtar, Shishir Bhattacharya, Shafiur Rahman Khan Bachchu, Robiul Hossain Kochi, Raja Debashish Roy, Tareque Masud, Mosi Uddin Saker, Monirujjaman, Saleh Ahmed, Md Kamal Uddin, Ruhul Amin, Toufiq-e-Elahi (Bir Bikram), Dr Abu Salam Mithu and Ajhar Ali.

Besides, Nari Mukti Sangsad, Citizen’s Rights Movement, Bangladesh Women Journalists Centre, Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association, Bangladesh Society for the Enforcement of Human Rights, Communist Party of Bangladesh, Jatiya Gono Front, five leftist leaning parties, Gono Mukti Andolan and Jatiya Mukti Council condemned the AL-Khelafat Majlish deal.