By: Shabbir Ahmed
The revival of the fascist Jamaat-I-Islami (JI) was beyond even the wild imagination of the people of Bangladesh after the independence in 1971. However, this happened under the patronization of a military dictator Gen. Zia, only a few years after the independence of Bangladesh. Despite the support of the successive military dictators, JI never gained any popularity. They did not have any strength in terms of support from the mass people of Bangladesh. They always showed their strengths in terrorizing and killing people in support of their distorted vision aimed at spreading communalism and sectarianism. Since JI did not have any popular support, they always needed hosts to support them for their survival like a parasite. In 1971, they used the Pakistani army, a genocidal killer, as their host. After the changeover in 1975, they grew again as a parasite with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) as their host. For a number of good reasons, many believe that the present host of JI is the main source of their energy for their survival. When a host is infected by a parasite, it is not possible to get rid of the parasite without treating the host. So, it is time now to identify BNP and resist them to refrain from hosting the fascist JI.
With the support of the host, JI leaders, workers, and supporters go beyond their limits. They become violent and ferocious with the strength they gain from their hosts. In 1971, they did not have any authority or support of the people to get involved in the Pakistani Government for taking any action to define the course of the country. Especially, they did not have any authority to define the course of the then East Pakistan because people did not give them any mandate for doing so. In the election that was held in 1970, they did not win a single seat in the parliament in East Pakistan. However, the shameless Jamaatis collaborated with their patron (the brutal Pakistani military) and became part of the government to take decisions on the course of the country. Through the sharing of power with the brutal Pakistani military, they actively took part in a genocide that made ten million refugees to flee to India only to save their lives and an additional three million to die to get rid of the fascist duo (JI and Pakistani military). Their brutality and the brutality of their fascist master ultimately led to the resistance (by the people) and emancipation of Bangladesh as an independent country in the world.
If they get a strong and able host, they are adept in doing many crimes, especially the sectarian violence and repression on the minority population. They learned this from their founder named Maulana Moududi, who incited violence against Qadianis in Pakistan. In Bangladesh, his able followers targeted both non-Muslims and Muslims in 1971. They have a distorted mindset because of their intolerant views on rational thinking about society, culture, and religion. To them, all of the critics, opponents, and rational thinkers are not Muslims. That is why they were able to kill so many intellectuals and secular democracy-loving people, who were Muslims. Whenever they feel threatened because of the resistance from the mass people, they resort to violence with attacks aimed at the minority and progressive people. They have attacked and are attacking the minority people now after feeling threatened by the resistance from the mass people, especially the young generation in Shahbag. It is easy to understand that the blood of the minority people in Bangladesh is now running cold with fear of the Jamaatis.
In Bangladesh, the Jamaati parasites got a powerful but a mischievous host, BNP, who are adept in playing multiple roles, all at the same time. They are in favor of trying the war criminals but they are the critics of the war crime tribunals. They want justice but once the verdict is given, they are against it. When the verdict on Kader Mullah was not given according to the severity of the crime, they said it was an internal deal between the government and the JI. Immediately after, the young generation along with the mass population came forward to raise their voice in Shahbag against the inadequate sentence given to a genocidal killer Kader Mullah. Some of the BNP leaders responded saying that the government was in a self-defeating course of action because of Shahbag. The government agreed with the demand of the mass population in Shahbag and started taking necessary steps. At that time, BNP remained mum to figure out their next misleading course of action. Recently, after the death sentence given to a self-declared Allama named Delwar Saidee, BNP now has come out with their full strength to give support to the cadres and workers of the accused and the convicted killers of 1971. All conscious people of Bangladesh should be concerned and aware of this deceptively colored patron of JI. The Bengalis of Bangladesh defeated the patron of JI in 1971. To save Bangladesh from the anarchy and terror of JI, the time has come to identify, resist, and defy the actions of their present day patron.