Bangladesh Islamists Rally as Elections Draw Near \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Hundreds of thousands gathered in Dhaka to support Jamaat-e-Islami ahead of Bangladesh’s 2025 elections. With Sheikh Hasina ousted and exiled, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus leads an interim government facing pressure from Islamist and student-led movements. The political balance is shifting as Islamists demand reforms and justice.
Quick Looks
- Jamaat-e-Islami rallies over 100,000 supporters in Dhaka.
- Rally follows Hasina’s ouster and exile to India.
- Interim PM Muhammad Yunus plans elections by April 2025.
- Jamaat pushes for proportional representation and electoral reforms.
- The party demands justice for protest killings, end to corruption.
- First rally at Suhrawardy Udyan allowed since 1971.
- Islamist leaders forge alliances with student-led political movements.
- Awami League denounces Yunus for enabling Jamaat’s return.
- Trump administration yet to comment officially on rising Islamist influence.
- Hasina faces charges of crimes against humanity from exile.
Deep Look
Bangladesh’s turbulent political landscape witnessed a dramatic escalation on Saturday as hundreds of thousands of Jamaat-e-Islami supporters rallied in central Dhaka, marking a historic re-entry into mainstream politics for the country’s largest Islamist party. The rally comes amid a backdrop of national uncertainty following the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the rise of an interim government under Muhammad Yunus, and increasing calls for the country to embrace an Islamist political framework.
Held at Suhrawardy Udyan, a deeply symbolic location where Pakistani forces surrendered in December 1971, the rally was the first time Jamaat-e-Islami had been permitted to gather there since Bangladesh’s independence. That decision alone signaled a radical departure from past governance and ignited a wave of backlash — particularly from the banned Awami League, which condemned the move as a betrayal of the nation’s foundational struggle.
Jamaat-e-Islami, long stigmatized for its role in opposing Bangladesh’s liberation, now appears poised to reinvent itself as a populist religious-political force. Its resurgence has been made possible by a unique alliance with the National Citizen Party (NCP) — a youth-driven movement born out of the 2024 anti-Hasina uprising, which led to the collapse of the Awami League’s 15-year grip on power.
A Shift in Bangladesh’s Political Power
After weeks of student-led protests in 2024, Hasina fled to India, where she remains in political exile. She now faces charges of crimes against humanity related to the government’s heavy-handed response to last year’s demonstrations, in which an estimated 1,400 people were killed, according to a United Nations report.
Stepping into the leadership vacuum, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was appointed to head a transitional administration tasked with restoring order and preparing the country for elections. While Yunus has gained international acclaim for his microfinance work, his political balancing act has raised concerns domestically — particularly over what critics see as a strategic accommodation of Islamist factions.
Jamaat’s return is being viewed as the most consequential development of the post-Hasina era. The party, previously ostracized, now openly rallies in central Dhaka and plans to contest all 300 parliamentary seats in the 2025 election. Though the Yunus government has stated that elections will be held by April, there is growing pressure — particularly from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies — to move the polls up to February.
Massive Turnout and Rising Islamist Rhetoric
Saturday’s rally drew several hundred thousand attendees, far exceeding expectations. Supporters began arriving as early as Friday night, camping on Dhaka University’s campus and forming human chains that stretched for miles toward the rally site. Men, women, and large groups of young men — many in their teens and twenties — carried Qurans, party flags, and placards demanding Islamic governance.
“We are here for a new Islamic Bangladesh,” declared 40-year-old Iqbal Hossain, who had traveled from Chittagong. “A government based on Shariah, ruled by honest men, not corrupted elites.”
Speakers demanded a seven-point agenda, including a proportional representation system, electoral reforms, justice for last year’s protest deaths, and implementation of the charter drafted by student movements during the uprising. Their rhetoric mixed Islamic ideals with nationalist fervor.
“We will sacrifice our lives to end corruption and install God-fearing leadership,” said 20-year-old Mohidul Morsalin Sayem, a student and NCP member. “If all Islamist groups unite, no one can defeat us — not even America, India, or the West.”
The party’s leader, Shafiqur Rahman, delivered a fiery speech attacking what he called the “secular fascism” of the Hasina regime. The 66-year-old fainted twice during his address but insisted on continuing after being briefly revived. “This time we fight not only for votes — but to purge the country of corruption and extortion,” he said. “Youth will lead this battle, and we will win it together.”
Controversy and Backlash
The rally’s location ignited intense national debate. Suhrawardy Udyan is hallowed ground for many in Bangladesh, commemorating the joint victory of Bangladeshi and Indian forces in 1971. That Jamaat — which openly sided with Pakistan during that war — was allowed to rally there was seen by many as an affront to history.
The Awami League, now operating from exile, released a scathing statement on X, calling the decision “a stark betrayal of the national conscience” and a “brazen act of undermining the sacrifices of the people who fought the evil axis of 1971.”
But the Yunus administration defended the move, framing it as a step toward political inclusivity and reconciliation in a fractured nation. “We are committed to allowing peaceful assembly for all,” Yunus said in a short statement. “Rebuilding a democratic future requires space for all voices, even those that were previously excluded.”
Still, concerns are rising — not only over Islamist resurgence but also regarding the use of state force in recent demonstrations. Last Wednesday, four civilians were killed in Gopalganj, a Hasina stronghold, during clashes with security forces. Their families claim no autopsies were performed, and the bodies were hastily buried or cremated. Yunus’ office insists all procedures were legal.
Regional and Global Implications
Jamaat’s alliance with student leaders — and its vocal anti-India campaign — has intensified diplomatic tensions with New Delhi. As Bangladesh’s historic ally, India played a key role in its 1971 independence. But Jamaat and the NCP have openly accused India of supporting what they call the “Hasina dictatorship,” fueling public sentiment against foreign interference.
The shift in Bangladesh’s power dynamics has also caught the attention of global powers. Though President Donald Trump has not publicly commented, sources within the U.S. State Department indicate Washington is closely monitoring the situation.
A senior White House official, speaking on background, stated: “While the United States respects Bangladesh’s sovereignty and political process, we are watching with concern the rising influence of groups with radical rhetoric and anti-democratic tendencies.”
Under President Trump’s second term, U.S. foreign policy in South Asia has emphasized countering Islamist extremism, protecting democratic allies, and maintaining Indo-Pacific stability. The resurgence of Jamaat, particularly in coordination with youth militias and political Islamists, may challenge that strategic framework.
What Comes Next?
Bangladesh appears to be heading into one of the most pivotal and unpredictable elections in its history. With the Awami League banned, Hasina in exile, and Islamist factions consolidating power, the 2025 elections may define the ideological future of the country — whether it embraces a more religious governance model or returns to secular democratic norms.
The BNP, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, remains a key player but is struggling to keep pace with Jamaat’s grassroots energy and the NCP’s viral youth engagement.
Meanwhile, interim Prime Minister Yunus walks a tightrope: praised internationally for restoring order but increasingly questioned at home for enabling a dramatic reconfiguration of the political spectrum.
Whether this transformation leads to renewed pluralism or further polarization remains to be seen. What is clear is that Bangladesh, 54 years after its bloody birth, is once again at a crossroads — and the entire region, and world, is watching.
Bangladesh Islamists Bangladesh Islamists Bangladesh Islamists
You must Register or Login to post a comment.