AhlulBayt News Agency: Bangladesh has reinstated the registration of Jamaat-e-Islami, the country’s largest Muslim party, more than a decade after it was banned by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government.
The Supreme Court’s decision, issued on Sunday, allows Jamaat-e-Islami to be formally listed with the Election Commission, paving the way for its participation in the next general election, which the interim government has promised to hold by June 2026.
Jamaat-e-Islami lawyer Shishir Monir welcomed the ruling, stating that it would foster a democratic, inclusive, and multiparty system in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country of 170 million people. He expressed hope that voters, regardless of ethnicity or religious background, would support Jamaat and contribute to a vibrant parliament with constructive debates.
The party had requested a review of a 2013 high court order that canceled its registration. This appeal followed the ousting of Hasina’s government in August, which was brought down by a student-led nationwide uprising.
Former Prime Minister Hasina, now 77, fled to India and is being tried in absentia for last year’s crackdown on protesters, which prosecutors have described as a "systematic attack." According to the United Nations, up to 1,400 people were killed during the unrest.
The Supreme Court’s decision on Jamaat-e-Islami came just days after it overturned the conviction of ATM Azharul Islam, a key party leader. Islam had been sentenced to death in 2014 for crimes including rape, murder, and genocide during Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Jamaat-e-Islami had supported Pakistan during the war, a position that continues to stir anger among many Bangladeshis.
Following the court ruling, Jamaat-e-Islami leader Shafiqur Rahman stated, “We, as individuals or as a party, are not beyond making mistakes.” Without specifying details, he sought public forgiveness for any wrongdoing.
Jamaat-e-Islami was historically a rival of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Awami League. Mujibur Rahman, Hasina’s father, later became Bangladesh’s founding president. Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and intensified crackdowns against its leaders.
In May, Bangladesh’s interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, imposed a ban on the Awami League, pending legal proceedings related to its handling of last year’s mass protests.
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