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Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and Opposition Leader Dr Shafiqur Rahman has said that the July uprising will not be considered complete until the rights of the people and the aspirations of the July mass uprising are fulfilled.
“July has not ended until the rights of the people and the aspirations of the July mass uprising are fulfilled. July will find its meaningful conclusion only when the rights of the people are ensured,” he said while speaking to journalists after visiting an exhibition titled “July Has Not Ended Yet” at the official residence of the opposition leader in the capital on Saturday.
Dr Shafiqur Rahman said attempts had been made to deprive people of their rights in various ways for 15 and a half years.
“We protested, sacrificed lives repeatedly, became crippled, went to jail and carried the burden of numerous cases. But the oppression did not end. Finally, in July, the people rose again and the students erupted in protest,” he said.
He said women students at Dhaka University were attacked on July 15 while authorities were trying to suppress the movement. “When women were assaulted, mothers also took to the streets. The movement then spread further,” he said.
He said the killings resumed with the death of Abu Sayed, a student of Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur, on July 16. At the same time, two people were killed in Dhaka and three in Chattogram. “The killings continued successively from July 18,” he said.
The Jamaat chief said August 3 presented an opportunity that could have determined the fate of the nation. According to him, when army officers and soldiers refused to fire on civilians, then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina still did not back down from what he described as a drive to suppress the movement through killings.
“From what we have learned, she reprimanded and verbally abused the heads of the forces. They reportedly said that if they used weapons, hundreds of thousands of people could lose their lives. But she allegedly said that no matter how many bodies fell, they should continue and send the people back to their homes. They refused,” he said.
Dr Shafiqur Rahman alleged that large-scale killings took place on August 3 and 4. He also alleged that the internet was shut down during the period to conceal the bodies.
He further alleged that on August 5, the day of Sheikh Hasina’s fall, people in Ashulia were left in a semi-conscious state inside a truck before petrol was poured over them and the vehicle was set on fire.
Referring to the interim government formed afterward to fill the temporary political vacuum, the Jamaat leader said many of its advisers had failed to demonstrate neutrality in carrying out their responsibilities.
He said the consensus commission formed for national reforms held discussions for months and prepared a charter. Although 31 political parties agreed on many minor issues, differences emerged when matters involving their own interests came to the fore.
He claimed that a large portion of those disagreements came from the current ruling party.
“We expressed differences on only a few issues, not to protect our party but to protect the people. We have taken positions on how Supreme Court judges should be appointed and how the Election Commission should be formed. These institutions cannot be formed through party personnel or partisan control. They must be formed through non-partisan commissions,” he said.
He said political parties had reached a consensus on the need for a reform council or constituent assembly to provide legitimacy to the reform proposals.
According to him, the National Citizen Party (NCP) had demanded a constituent assembly, while the BNP had also proposed a referendum and told the people that if the majority voted “yes” in the referendum, everyone would be obligated to implement that verdict.
However, he alleged that the position changed after the election and formation of the government.
“They came to power and found an opportunity to deceive; their mentality changed. Two oaths were supposed to be taken, but they took one and did not take the other. They are saying it is not in the Constitution. The 2026 election is not in the Constitution either. This is about the needs of the nation. The will of the people is the supreme law,” Dr Shafiqur Rahman said.
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