Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami is conspiring to establish a one-party state, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged today (Aug 16).

“One idealist has departed, and another has emerged. Stop labelling people as ‘munafiq’ (hypocrite) or ‘murtad’ (apostate) simply because they do not join your political organisation,” he said at a discussion at the Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka.

In a swipe at Jamaat, Rizvi urged the party to practise an advanced democratic system where no one is deprived due to political beliefs.

The event, organised by former students of Dhaka College, marked the anniversary of the July Uprising.

Rizvi also claimed that the director general of the Islamic Foundation warned employees that their jobs would be at risk unless they became members (rokon) of Jamaat. “There are also allegations from various government offices that staff are being pressured to join Jamaat,” he added.

Addressing the event as chief guest, BNP Standing Committee Member Moyeen Khan alleged that the 2008 national election was neither free nor fair.

“It was a staged election. Before the polls, there was a blueprint detailing who would win in all 300 constituencies. That is how the 1/11 political episode was orchestrated in Bangladesh,” he said, adding that the “false history” created by the Awami League during that period must be exposed.

The programme also honoured families of martyrs and survivors of the July Uprising and provided them with financial assistance.

MN/