‘It’s propaganda to call us ‘hardline’…Bangladesh Jamaat has never been anti-India…We expect reciprocity…’
The demands of Yunus’s interim govt include changing Bangladesh’s first-past-the-post electoral system to a proportional representation one, Amir of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Shafiqur Rahman tells Mohua Chatterjee. But the “liberal party based on Islamic ideology” is non-committal about a timeframe for elections and transfer of power
With Jamaat supporting Yunus-led interim govt, when do you want the much-awaited polls to be held?
People are eager for elections, deprived of the opportunity to elect their representatives for 15 years. They tasted freedom when they overthrew Sheikh Hasina’s autocratic govt. Interim govt’s main task is to ensure free, fair, and impartial polls. Consensus is required on certain issues. Once completed, the national demand to hold elections will be met within a short and reasonable time.
Jamaat’s support to Yunus govt is conditional. What reforms are you demanding?
People are eager for elections, deprived of the opportunity to elect their representatives for 15 years. They tasted freedom when they overthrew Sheikh Hasina’s autocratic govt. Interim govt’s main task is to ensure free, fair, and impartial polls. Consensus is required on certain issues. Once completed, the national demand to hold elections will be met within a short and reasonable time.
Jamaat’s support to Yunus govt is conditional. What reforms are you demanding?