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MM Rahmatullah: Bangladesh
Jamaat-e-Islami's Dhaka South City unit on Wednesday launched a month-long
programme marking the second anniversary of the July-August mass uprising with
a prayer and discussion meeting in memory of those killed, injured and
permanently disabled during the movement. The event was held at
the Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh (IDEB) in the capital, where
the party reiterated its demand for the implementation of the "July
Charter," the trial of those responsible for the killings during the
uprising, and state recognition and rehabilitation for the victims and their
families. Presiding over the
programme, Jamaat-e-Islami Central Executive Council member and Ameer of Dhaka
South City, Nurul Islam Bulbul MP, expressed disappointment that no official
state programme had been announced to mark the anniversary of the July
uprising. He alleged that the government had ignored the public mandate
reflected in the referendum and was failing to implement the July Charter. Bulbul said the
implementation of the July Charter would help prevent the return of
authoritarianism and strengthen the country's democratic transition. He also
called for state recognition for those killed during the uprising,
rehabilitation and allowances for the injured, and the prompt trial of all
incidents of killings linked to the movement. The programme was
conducted by Jamaat Central Executive Council member and Dhaka South City
Secretary Dr. Shafiqul Islam Masud MP. Among the speakers was
Sheikh Jamal Hasan, father of martyr Sheikh Mehedi Hasan Junayed, who urged the
government to honour the referendum outcome by implementing the July Charter.
He warned that failing to do so would amount to a betrayal of those who
sacrificed their lives during the movement. Mosharraf Hossain,
father of martyr Jihad Hossain, alleged that his business had repeatedly been
targeted over extortion demands. He said his son had sacrificed his life for a
just and discrimination-free Bangladesh but claimed that the country's
political direction had not changed as expected. Mohammad Shahidul
Islam, father of martyr Farhan Faiyaz, said the families of the July victims
should not be viewed through a political lens, adding that they were seeking
justice rather than partisan interests. He also alleged that the prime minister
was not receiving accurate information regarding the concerns of the victims'
families. Other speakers
included Al-Amin Mir, father of martyr Rezaul Karim; Syed Gaziur Rahman, father
of martyr Alif; and injured July uprising participants Shah Alam Gazi and
Kamrul Islam. They demanded justice for those killed during the uprising and
implementation of the July Charter in line with the referendum. Several central and
city leaders of Jamaat also addressed the meeting, expressing solidarity with
the victims' families and reiterating their call for judicial accountability
and state reforms based on the ideals of the July uprising. At the end of the
programme, Bulbul announced a month-long series of events to commemorate the
second anniversary of the uprising. The schedule includes an online awareness
campaign, visits to the graves of those killed, meetings with victims'
families, seminars and symposiums, documentary screenings, cultural programmes,
free medical camps, blood donation drives, food distribution for orphans,
labour rallies, special prayers, processions, and historical gatherings at key
locations associated with the uprising.
The party also
announced plans to publish a special bulletin documenting the July-August
uprising, organise a three-day theatre festival, produce ten short films, and
release five new revolutionary songs as part of the commemorative programme.