Jamaat under fire as misconduct allegations mount

A series of allegations of misconduct, including sexual deviance and fraud, against leaders and activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and affiliated organisations has placed the main opposition party under mounting pressure over its moral and religious values. 
At least 42 incidents came to light over the past six months, with several high-profile cases, such as the death of Satkhira-4 Lawmaker Gazi Nazrul Islam’s second wife, raising questions about accountability within the party. Furthermore, there is the incident in Cumilla involving a leader of Islami Chhatra Shibir who, after engaging in relations under the promise of marriage, forced the woman to have an abortion before going into hiding.
Besides, Jamaat-e-Islami dissolved its Cumilla unit after a clash between two rival factions at its city office on 14 October and later formed a two-member committee to investigate the incident. One controversy emerged shortly before the 13th parliamentary election on 12 February, when Sabbir Hossain, an active Jamaat leader in Sharshaupazila of Jashore, was found inside the bedroom of an expatriate’s wife late that night.
Caught in a compromising situation, Sabbir claimed he was visiting the house to seek votes for the party’s electoral symbol.  Saiful Arefin Miraj, a finance secretary of Jamaat’s Ukhiya unit in Cox’s Bazar, allegedly attempted to force another expatriate’s wife into marriage by threatening to circulate intimate videos that he had secretly recorded without consent.
The woman later filed a case with local police under the Pornography Control Act, alleging that Miraj confined her for 18 days and taken money and gold from her possession in the name of marriage.
Another case involving Shibir leader Jisan Pradhan came to light in June after his reported disappearance from Cumilla’s Daudkandi upazila sparked concern and criticism online, with Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman expressing concern over the incident.
Jisan was supposedly found in poor health near Laksam Railway Station on the night of 12 June. However, subsequent developments raised questions over whether his disappearance was staged. Allegations involving minors have also emerged against Jamaat’s party men. In Cumilla’s Muradnagar area, a Jamaat leader named Azhar was accused of raping a 10-year-old girl on 1 July in a tin-shed room near his poultry farm. 
In another case, former Jamaat leader Md Alomgir Hossain Farazi is accused of sexually abusing a fifth-grader after luring her to behind his medicine shop on the pretext of treating her headache through spiritual healing.  The accumulation of such allegations has put Jamaat under mounting pressure just six months after becomming parliament’s primary opposition party.
The Shariah-compliant major political party took disciplinary action in some cases, but the broader issue of accountability is still significant. “No one is above making mistakes as to err is human. Still, we are taking action against rule violators and offenders under the party’s constitution,” said Ehsanul Mahbub Jubayer, spokesperson and secretary general of Jamaat.
Aasked how many of leaders and activists have so far been punished for their offences, he said the party’s respective units take appropriate action when an individual is found guilty. “But we believe in the dignity of every individual, so we do not disclose names or other details unless the offence is serious,” Ehsanul added. He went on to say that a section of people tend to sensationalise and exaggerate claims made against party members, expressing concern over media bias. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior Jamaat policymaker said upholding the party’s religious values is a core principle of its politics.
Moreover, he claimed that most allegations are unsubstantiated and politically motivated to tarnish the the party’s image. Claiming that Jamaat believes in transparency and accuracy in its operations, he said they are already taking disciplinary measures based on evidence from internal investigations. Sajjad Zahir Chandan, president of the Communist Party of Bangladesh, said Jamaat men violated women during the Liberation War and its leaders and activists are now indulging in similar activities after emerging as the opposition.
“So, the government must take tough action against such wrongdoers regardless of which political party they belong to,” Sajjad added.