Latest news with #JamaateIslami


Al Jazeera
3 days ago
- General
- Al Jazeera
Bangladesh top court lifts ban on country's largest Muslim party
Bangladesh has restored the registration of the country's largest Muslim party, more than a decade after it was banned by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government. Sunday's Supreme Court decision means the Jamaat-e-Islami party can now be formally listed with the Election Commission, paving the way for its participation in the next general election, which the interim government has promised to hold by June next year. Jamaat-e-Islami lawyer Shishir Monir said the ruling would allow a 'democratic, inclusive and multiparty system' in the Muslim-majority country of 170 million people. 'We hope that Bangladeshis, regardless of their ethnicity or religious identity, will vote for Jamaat and that the parliament will be vibrant with constructive debates,' Monir told journalists. The party had appealed for a review of a 2013 high court order cancelling its registration after Hasina's government was ousted in August by a student-led nationwide uprising. Hasina, 77, fled to India and is now being tried in absentia over her crackdown last year, described by prosecutors as a 'systematic attack' on protesters, which according to the United Nations, killed up to 1,400 people. The Supreme Court decision on Jamaat-e-Islami came after it overturned a conviction against ATM Azharul Islam, one of the party's key leaders, on Tuesday. Islam was sentenced to death in 2014 for rape, murder and genocide during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Jamaat-e-Islami supported Pakistan during the war, a role that still sparks anger among many Bangladeshis today. 'We, as individuals or as a party, are not beyond making mistakes,' Jamaat-e-Islami leader Shafiqur Rahman said after Islam's conviction was overturned without specifying what he was referring to. 'We seek your pardon if we have done anything wrong,' he said. The party's members were rivals of Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman of the Awami League, who would become Bangladesh's founding president. Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and cracked down on its leaders. In May, Bangladesh's interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, banned the Awami League, pending the outcome of legal proceedings over its crackdown on last year's mass protests.


Arab News
3 days ago
- General
- Arab News
Bangladesh top court restores Jamaat-e-Islami party
DHAKA: Bangladesh on Sunday restored the registration of the largest Islamist party, allowing it to take part in elections, more than a decade after it was removed under the now-overthrown government. The Supreme Court overturned a cancelation of Jamaat-e-Islami's registration, allowing it to be formally listed as a political party with the Election Commission. 'The Election Commission is directed to deal with the registration of that party in accordance with law,' commission lawyer Towhidul Islam told AFP. Jamaat-e-Islami party lawyer, Shishir Monir, said the Supreme Court's decision would allow a 'democratic, inclusive and multi-party system' in the Muslim-majority country of 170 million people. 'We hope that Bangladeshis, regardless of their ethnicity or religious identity, will vote for Jamaat, and that the parliament will be vibrant with constructive debates,' Monir told journalists. After Sheikh Hasina was ousted as prime minister in August, the party appealed for a review of the 2013 high court order banning it. Sunday's decision comes after the Supreme Court on May 27 overturned a conviction against a key leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, A.T.M. Azharul Islam. Islam had been sentenced to death in 2014 for rape, murder and genocide during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Jamaat-e-Islami supported Islamabad during the war, a role that still sparks anger among many Bangladeshis today. They were rivals of Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman of the Awami League, who would become Bangladesh's founding figure. Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and cracked down on its leaders. In May, Bangladesh's interim government banned the Awami League, pending the outcome of a trial over its crackdown on mass protests that prompted her ouster last year.


Malay Mail
3 days ago
- General
- Malay Mail
Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami cleared to contest Bangladesh polls after top court overturns ban
DHAKA, June 1 — Bangladesh today restored the registration of the largest Islamist party, allowing it to take part in elections, more than a decade after it was removed under the now-overthrown government. The Supreme Court overturned a cancellation of Jamaat-e-Islami's registration, allowing it to be formally listed as a political party with the Election Commission. 'The Election Commission is directed to deal with the registration of that party in accordance with law,' commission lawyer Towhidul Islam told AFP. Jamaat-e-Islami party lawyer, Shishir Monir, said the Supreme Court's decision would allow a 'democratic, inclusive and multi-party system' in the Muslim-majority country of 170 million people. 'We hope that Bangladeshis, regardless of their ethnicity or religious identity, will vote for Jamaat, and that the parliament will be vibrant with constructive debates,' Monir told journalists. After Sheikh Hasina was ousted as prime minister in August, the party appealed for a review of the 2013 high court order banning it. Today's decision comes after the Supreme Court on May 27 overturned a conviction against a key leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, ATM Azharul Islam. Islam had been sentenced to death in 2014 for rape, murder and genocide during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Jamaat-e-Islami supported Islamabad during the war, a role that still sparks anger among many Bangladeshis today. They were rivals of Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman of the Awami League, who would become Bangladesh's founding figure. Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and cracked down on its leaders. In May, Bangladesh's interim government banned the Awami League, pending the outcome of a trial over its crackdown on mass protests that prompted her ouster last year. — AFP


Bloomberg
3 days ago
- General
- Bloomberg
Bangladesh Islamist Party Set For Comeback as Court Removes Ban
Bangladesh's top court has reinstated the registration of Jamaat-e-Islami, paving the way for the country's largest Islamist party to participate in the next election. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court nullified a 2013 verdict that had revoked Jamaat's registration, Mohammad Shishir Manir, a lawyer representing Jamaat-e-Islami, told reporters in Dhaka on Sunday.


Khaleej Times
3 days ago
- General
- Khaleej Times
Bangladesh top court restores Jamaat-e-Islami party, permits to partake in election
Bangladesh on Sunday restored the registration of the largest Islamist party, allowing it to take part in elections, more than a decade after it was removed under the now-overthrown government. The Supreme Court overturned a cancellation of Jamaat-e-Islami's registration, allowing it to be formally listed as a political party with the Election Commission. "The Election Commission is directed to deal with the registration of that party in accordance with law," commission lawyer Towhidul Islam told AFP. Jamaat-e-Islami party lawyer, Shishir Monir, said the Supreme Court's decision would allow a "democratic, inclusive and multi-party system" in the Muslim-majority country of 170 million people. "We hope that Bangladeshis, regardless of their ethnicity or religious identity, will vote for Jamaat, and that the parliament will be vibrant with constructive debates," Monir told journalists. After Sheikh Hasina was ousted as prime minister in August, the party appealed for a review of the 2013 high court order banning it. Sunday's decision comes after the Supreme Court on May 27 overturned a conviction against a key leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, A.T.M. Azharul Islam. Islam had been sentenced to death in 2014 for rape, murder and genocide during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Jamaat-e-Islami supported Islamabad during the war, a role that still sparks anger among many Bangladeshis today. They were rivals of Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman of the Awami League, who would become Bangladesh's founding figure. Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and cracked down on its leaders. In May, Bangladesh's interim government banned the Awami League, pending the outcome of a trial over its crackdown on mass protests that prompted her ouster last year.