Jamaat ameer pledges ministerial post for Nahid Islam if in power

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman has announced that if Jamaat-e-Islami forms the government, Nahid Islam, convener of its alliance partner the National Citizen Party (NCP), will be appointed a minister.

Addressing voters at a public rally in Dhaka-11 constituency on Sunday, the Jamaat chief said Nahid Islam was born and raised in the area and was therefore well aware of its problems. “We will not tell the mother a story about her sister,” he said, implying that Nahid Islam knows the locality firsthand.

“If we succeed in forming the government, you will see Nahid Islam as a minister, Insha’Allah,” Dr Shafiqur Rahman said. He added that if the alliance emerged victorious on 12 February, Nahid Islam would be appointed as a minister to the new cabinet. “The Jamaat-led alliance will not make false promises. We will build the country with whatever resources we have,” he said.

Speaking at an 11-party alliance rally at the DIT Project playground in Badda in support of Nahid Islam, the Jamaat ameer further claimed that on 12 February the people would “show a red card to the slaves of hegemony”. He alleged that all the “cards” of BNP were fake and said the electorate would reject them at the polls.

The Jamaat chief also said that the aspirations of the nation were not fulfilled in 1947 or 1971, and that the events of July and August occurred when common demands were suppressed in 2024. He claimed that the nation was freed from what he termed “Awami ignorance” on 5 August, but alleged that from 6 August onwards another “tyrant” had emerged to oppress the people.