Latest news with #Jamaat-e-IslamiBangladesh
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- General
- Business Standard
Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh makes political comeback: Decoding its history
Bangladesh's Supreme Court has reinstated the political registration of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh and its student wing, Islami Chhatra Shibir — two organisations long banned for their alleged links to extremism and their open rejection of the country's secular principles. The verdict, which follows an earlier decision by the Muhammad Yunus-led caretaker government to lift the ban, marks Jamaat's return to the political mainstream after over a decade in the shadows. With this legal clearance, the Islamist party is now eligible to contest national elections — a development being watched closely in India's strategic and security circles. A return rooted in history Founded in 1941 by Islamist ideologue Abul Ala Maududi in pre-Partition India, Jamaat-e-Islami entered East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) politics with a mission to create an Islamic state governed by Sharia law. Its role in Bangladesh's Liberation War, however, would etch its name into the nation's darkest chapters. During the 1971 war, Jamaat and its allied militias — most notoriously the Razakars, al-Badr, and al-Shams — collaborated with the Pakistani Army in committing widespread atrocities. These included targeted killings of intellectuals, mass rapes, and the massacre of Hindu minorities. Following Bangladesh's independence, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's government banned Jamaat under Article 38 of the new Constitution for its religious foundations and wartime role. The party's leadership either fled or went underground. However, the ban was lifted after Sheikh Mujib's assassination. In 1977, President Ziaur Rahman's military regime removed secularism from Bangladesh's Constitution and allowed religion-based political parties to function. Jamaat re-emerged and aligned with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), eventually securing ministerial posts in BNP-led governments. Decades later, the War Crimes Tribunal launched in 2009 by the government of Sheikh Hasina - daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman - led to the conviction of top Jamaat leaders. Ghulam Azam, Motiur Rahman Nizami, and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed were convicted for genocide, rape, and crimes against humanity. These convictions triggered mass protests, known as the Shahbagh movement, demanding the party's permanent exclusion from politics. Jamaat was formally deregistered in 2013 and designated a terrorist organisation under the Anti-Terrorism Act on August 1, 2024. The ban, however, was short-lived and was lifted on August 28 the same year by the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus. A return fuelled by a political vacuum Jamaat's resurgence is not happening in isolation. It follows months of political turmoil in Bangladesh, sparked by anti-quota protests that quickly evolved into a nationwide anti-government movement in 2024. The unrest left more than 400 people dead and forced Sheikh Hasina into self-imposed exile. Her party, the Awami League, has since been banned. The void has been filled — swiftly and deliberately — by Islamist factions. Jamaat and Islami Chhatra Shibir are believed to have played a pivotal role in mobilising student protests. According to an India Today report, 'Islami Chhatra Shibir cadres were admitted to many universities in Bangladesh from where they instigated students against the government.' With the Awami League out of the frame, the caretaker administration under Muhammad Yunus has moved to mainstream Jamaat — a party it sees as both ideologically aligned and politically useful. Observers say this is less a case of national reconciliation and more an effort to consolidate power in a fragmented landscape. Concerns in India For New Delhi, Jamaat's re-entry into Bangladeshi politics is far from a procedural change in a neighbouring country. It represents a potential strategic reversal. India had long viewed the Hasina-led government as a dependable partner — on issues ranging from counterterrorism and intelligence sharing to border stability and regional trade. Jamaat's ideological leanings, its pro-Pakistan posture, and its history of minority persecution place it at direct odds with India's security interests. The concern is twofold. First, the 4,000-km border between the two countries — particularly in West Bengal and Assam — has a history of porous movement, infiltration, and communal tension. Second, security agencies fear that Jamaat's return could renew radicalisation networks, create safe passage for militants, and embolden attacks on Bangladesh's Hindu community — potentially triggering refugee flows into India. Jamaat's global web Jamaat-e-Islami's influence is not confined to Bangladesh. In Pakistan, it continues to exert influence through its student wing, Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, and also maintains ideological linkages with groups such as Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. In the West, Jamaat has built soft-power networks through the diaspora. In the UK and US, the group operates through religious and cultural organisations, and has been known to lobby policymakers under the banner of minority rights and democratic inclusion. Washington has often pressured Dhaka to include Jamaat in the democratic process, viewing the ban as undemocratic — a position that sits uncomfortably with India, given the party's history. More recently, Jamaat attracted headlines for proposing an 'independent Rohingya state' during meetings in Dhaka with a Chinese Communist Party delegation. While largely symbolic, the statement adds to the region's growing instability, especially as armed groups like the Arakan Army gain control in Myanmar's border areas. (With agency inputs)
NDTV
4 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Radical Outfit May Soon Contest Bangladesh Polls. How It Impacts India
Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh and its student wing Chatra Shibpur have regained their political status, with the Supreme Court restoring their registration and allowing them to be listed with the Election Commission for fighting future elections. This follows the Muhammad Yunus government lifting a ban on the organisation soon after taking charge last year. The Jamaat has remained active in Bangladesh despite losing its registration in 2013 and being barred from elections. It is now trying to rebrand itself ahead of national elections after being accused of being involved in attacks on Hindus in the aftermath of Sheikh Hasina's ouster. Mr Yunus's critics have accused him of clinging to power with the Jamaat's support, which has used the students' movement in the country as a front to gnaw its way back into politics. Earlier, the court had overturned the conviction of ATM Azharul Islam, a key leader of the organisation who was sentenced to death in 2014 for rape, murder and genocide during the 1971 war for the liberation of Bangladesh. The Jamaat-e-Islami had supported Pakistan during the 1971 war - despite the torture and genocide that marred the erstwhile East Pakistan's history. The Pakistan Army, on the orders of the Pakistan government, had committed severe atrocities on citizens of Bangladesh during their liberation struggle, including mass rape and murder. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had cracked down on the Jamaat-e-Islami for their involvement in terror activities. But with Jamaat clawing its way back into Bangladesh's political space, there are severe implications for the neighbourhood, especially India, which shares the longest border with Bangladesh. With Pakistan trying to regain space in Bangladesh, the resurgence of the Jamaat gives it the necessary political space to find a way back in. The Jamaat-e-Islami's pro-Pakistan stand is in tune with Muhammad Yunus's assertion to build "stronger ties with Pakistan. This is why political analysts in Bangladesh imply that Yunus came to power with the support of the Jamaat, which was the force behind the students' uprising, while his critics argue that he wants to extend his stay in power with the backing of the Jamaat. There are other geo-political implications of the Jamaat's stand on various issues. For example, last month, Bangladesh's Jamaat-e-Islami proposed the creation of an independent Rohingya state in a meeting with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) representatives in Dhaka. The delegation was led by Peng Jiubin, the Director-General of the Southeast and South Asian Affairs Bureau under the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee. This comes amid a surge of Rohingyas into Bangladesh as Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs) seize power along Myanmar's international borders, especially the Arakan Army, an EAO operating in the Rakhine State of Myanmar. What If Jamaat Succeeds? If the Jamaat is successful in convincing other countries and cobbling together some consensus, it would impact India's geo-political interest in the region. India has invested in the Sittwe Port and the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP), India's flagship connectivity initiative in Myanmar, which aims to enhance road and maritime links with Southeast Asia. It will also provide an alternative access route to India's northeastern region, contributing to economic development there. The project connects Sittwe Port in Myanmar to the India-Myanmar border via a 225-kilometre waterway to Paletwa, where an IWT terminal is being set up, followed by a road from there to the border in Zorinpui in South Mizoram. The Jamaat has also established a network through South Asian immigrant communities. Its stated motive of establishing an Islamic state goes against the ethos of pluralism, which seems to be receding from the ideological space in Bangladesh. A hardline Islamic state, if the Jamaat has its way, with close links to Pakistan on the eastern side, could lead to huge security worries for India. The Jamaat-E-Islami, while holding a pro-Pakistan stance, however, so far never won a majority but has played the role of Kingmaker. It has earlier been an ally of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which was the main opposition party in Bangladesh during the Sheikh Hasina regime. Of late, there have been issues where the BNP leadership and the Jamaat have disagreed. Among those is conducting elections by December 2025. The BNP has been firm on this demand, while the Jamaat has been comfortable with Yunus holding on for longer, as it gives the organisation more time to mobilise for elections. The Jamaat also has a larger motive in downplaying Bangladesh's freedom struggle and India's role in the 1971 war. The Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami that was one of the main players in the 2024 uprising against Sheikh Hasina, faced massive backlash for an article in its magazine Chhatra Sangbad for describing Muslim participation in the Liberation War as "a failure" and a "lack of foresight". It apologised later amid pressure, but the BNP students' wing condemned this line of thought and openly took a stance diametrically opposite to the Jamaat, which has always harboured pro-Pakistan sentiments. Many saw it as the Jamaat testing the waters over its effort to create an Islamic brotherhood.
