28 August 2024: The interim government in Bangladesh, led by Muhammad Yunus, has lifted a ban on Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI) that was imposed by the previous government under the anti-terrorism law, reports Al Jazeera.
During the last days of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, the party was accused of encouraging violence during student protests, which led to the implementation of the ban. The Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday lifted the ban and said in an official notice that there was no specific evidence linking BJI to terrorist activities.
Al Jazeera added that BJI refuted the accusations and termed the ban as ‘illegal, extrajudicial, and unconstitutional’. The party was restricted from political activities and was not allowed to contest elections.
The ban on BJI was imposed on August 1, four days before Sheikh Hasina was overthrown by the nationwide students’ protests and was forced to flee the country. Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the secretary-general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, accused Hasina’s government of attempting to distract from a security forces crackdown that resulted in the deaths of over 600 people, according to United Nations estimates.
The BJI’s lawyer, Shishir Monir, stated that though the ban has been withdrawn, the party has planned to submit a special petition seeking to register the party with the Election Commission of Bangladesh so that the party can contest the coming election, according to the report.
