Jamaat Protests Chief Whip’s Alleged Threat to Halt Development if Party Candidate Loses

PNN News Desk | Dhaka

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has condemned remarks allegedly made by National Parliament Chief Whip and Barguna-2 MP Nurul Islam Moni, threatening to halt government development projects in a union if the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-nominated candidate failed to win the Union Parishad election. The party maintains that such remarks amount to interference in the local government system and could undermine voters’ right to cast their ballots freely.

On Saturday (October 17), Advocate Ehsanul Mahbub Zubayer, assistant secretary-general of Jamaat-e-Islami and secretary of its central publicity and media department, expressed the party’s reaction in a statement.

The statement said Nurul Islam Moni made the remarks at a BNP party workers’ meeting held at the grounds of Bamna Asmatunnesa Girls’ School on October 15. According to the statement, Moni said development work would not be carried out in a union if the party’s nominated candidate failed to win the election.

Jamaat leader Ehsanul Mahbub Zubayer said such remarks by a member of parliament were inconsistent with the responsibilities of the office and the oath taken as a lawmaker.

He alleged that the chief whip had effectively threatened to deprive residents of the relevant union of development benefits if the BNP candidate failed to secure victory. He also referred to remarks attributed to Moni suggesting that people would not be able to obtain development assistance by approaching him if another candidate were elected.

Zubayer said making development projects conditional on the electoral victory of a particular party’s candidate could influence local government elections. In his view, such statements raised the possibility of violations of the electoral code of conduct and could instil fear among voters.

In the statement, Ehsanul Mahbub Zubayer also criticised remarks made by several lawmakers and ministers in the current government. He alleged that some of their statements were reminiscent of the conduct associated with the country’s previous authoritarian rule, potentially hindering Bangladesh’s democratic progress.

He further said that such remarks and behaviour were unacceptable following the July mass uprising of 2024. He called on the individuals concerned to act responsibly and give due importance to the rights and expectations of the people.

However, the statement did not mention whether Nurul Islam Moni had issued any response to the allegations concerning his remarks.