Bangladesh’s influential Islamists rally for parliamentary entry, vow to implement Shariah law

Bangladesh’s influential Islamists rally for parliamentary entry, vow to implement Shariah law
Bangladesh’s influential Islamists rally for parliamentary entry, vow to implement Shariah law

Hello and welcome to the details of Bangladesh’s influential Islamists rally for parliamentary entry, vow to implement Shariah law and now with the details

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Mamunul Haque, an Islamic scholar and joint secretary-general of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, an influential coalition of Islamic schools, speaks during an interview with AFP at his office in Dhaka April 28, 2025. — AFP pic

DHAKA, May 2 — Bangladesh’s Islamists are readying to make political gains after being crushed for years by the government that was overthrown in a mass uprising last year, rallying hardline loyalists for eagerly anticipated elections.

“We are pretty confident about entering the parliament in the next election,” Muhammad Mamunul Haque, joint secretary of Hefazat-e-Islam, an influential coalition of Islamic schools, told AFP in an interview.

The coalition will hold a mass rally in the capital Dhaka tomorrow in what is expected to be one of their biggest public shows of strength for years as religiously fuelled activism gains popularity.

Haque, 52, said the group will push to implement Shariah, or Islamic law, and believes the group’s network of tens of thousands of seminaries — claiming to have some 500,000 members — means they will do well if the vote “is free and fair”.

Hefazat-e-Islam is an alliance of different parties and Muslim organisations, including Haque’s Khilafat-e-Majlish party.

A hugely influential pressure group, it has been courted by political parties since it was founded 15 years ago.

No date has been set for elections but caretaker leader Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who heads the interim government, has promised polls will be held by June 2026 at the latest.

Strength after revolution

The South Asian nation of some 170 million people last held elections in January 2024, when Sheikh Hasina won a fourth term as prime minister in the absence of genuine opposition parties.

Her opponents boycotted the vote after a crackdown.

Hasina, who was blamed for extensive human rights abuses, took a tough stand against Islamist movements during her autocratic 15-year rule.

Thousands were detained, including Haque, who was arrested in 2021 and spent three years in jail.

He faced around a dozen charges after Islamists tried to protest against a visit by Hasina’s key ally Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Hindu-nationalist leader of neighbouring India.

Hasina fled to New Delhi in August as crowds stormed her palace.

She remains in self-imposed exile in India, infuriating Bangladeshis determined that she face trial for alleged “mass murder”.

Islamist groups have gained strength with Hasina gone and have increasingly sought to impose their vision on the wider population.

That has sparked worries from smaller groups, including Muslim Sufi worshippers and the Hindu minority, who together account for less than a tenth of the population.

Women, in particular, have expressed concern.

Islamists have demanded an end to a swath of activities, including cultural events deemed “anti-Islamic” — from music to theatre festivals, women’s football matches and kite-flying celebrations.

Mobs have vandalised Sufi shrines. Supporters of Haque’s Khilafat-E-Majlis group stormed a public library last month and carted away hundreds of books before returning them.

Golam Rabbani, a leader of Khilafat-E-Majlish’s youth wing, said they had targeted books that “promoted atheism”, including Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore and the national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.

‘Implement Shariah’

Hefazat-e-Islam’s rally tomorrow follows two days of marches by other key parties who are also seeking their support.

Those include the powerful Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), expected to be the largest political force, and the National Citizens Party (NCP), formed by students who spearheaded the uprising against Hasina.

It also includes the largest single Islamist political party, Jamaat-e-Islami.

Haque said the group opposed a government women’s commission and its recommendations to end discriminatory provisions, including equal inheritance rights for men and women.

“The commission is disrespectful to Islamic family traditions,” Haque said.

“It seems they want to destroy the religious values attached to marriage and divorce and want to establish a Western society.”

Muslim-majority Bangladesh has a constitution based on the four pillars of nationalism, socialism, democracy and secularism.

However, Haque said his supporters wanted Islamic law.

“We will implement Shariah,” Haque said, insisting all would be treated fairly.

“Everything will be guided by the Quran... under an Islamic welfare state, all, regardless of their faith, will be treated justly.”

That would include capital punishment for blasphemy against Islam.

“We demand death sentences for speaking against Allah, tarnishing the image of the Prophet, and offending Muslims,” Haque said.

“There is no room for negotiation in this regard.” — AFP

These were the details of the news Bangladesh’s influential Islamists rally for parliamentary entry, vow to implement Shariah law for this day. We hope that we have succeeded by giving you the full details and information. To follow all our news, you can subscribe to the alerts system or to one of our different systems to provide you with all that is new.

It is also worth noting that the original news has been published and is available at Malay Mail and the editorial team at AlKhaleej Today has confirmed it and it has been modified, and it may have been completely transferred or quoted from it and you can read and follow this news from its main source.

PREV Thailand reports first anthrax death in decades, over 600 potentially exposed to contaminated meat
NEXT US, Ukraine ink minerals deal after delay, with Trump tying aid to access

Author Information

I am Joshua Kelly and I focus on breaking news stories and ensuring we (“Al-KhaleejToday.NET”) offer timely reporting on some of the most recent stories released through market wires about “Services” sector. I have formerly spent over 3 years as a trader in U.S. Stock Market and is now semi-stepped down. I work on a full time basis for Al-KhaleejToday.NET specializing in quicker moving active shares with a short term view on investment opportunities and trends. Address: 838 Emily Drive Hampton, SC 29924, USA Phone: (+1) 803-887-5567 Email: [email protected]