Jamaat to Participate Elections after Efeting July Charter and Level Playing Field: Taher

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has called for the legal formalization of the July Charter before the next parliamentary election, warning against what it described as a "managed" electoral process.

At a protest rally in Dhaka’s Bijoynagar on Wednesday (August 13), Deputy Ameer and former MP Dr. Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher declared, “We want elections, not selections.” The event, organized by Jamaat’s Dhaka Metropolitan units, drew hundreds of supporters and concluded with a march through Paltan.

Taher affirmed the party’s willingness to participate in the upcoming election- but only under fair and transparent conditions. “If the government pushes forward with a pre-designed outcome, the people will rise again to reclaim their rights,” he warned.

The Jamaat leader criticized the interim government for what he called the partial and symbolic acceptance of the July Charter- a reform roadmap developed by a national commission to ensure credible elections. “They speak in favor of the Charter, but without legal recognition and full implementation, it has no value,” Taher said. “Reforms without constitutional safeguards are meaningless.”

He questioned the purpose of the reform commission if its recommendations were not to be institutionalized. “If the July Charter lacks legal standing, why was the commission formed in the first place?” he asked.

Taher claimed that while most political parties have offered conditional support, only Jamaat has endorsed the Charter unconditionally.

Citing a recent survey, he said 71% of Bangladeshis favor a proportional representation (PR) system in parliament. “That is the will of the people,” he said. “If political leaders can’t see this, perhaps they’re wearing the wrong glasses.”

Addressing Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, Taher referenced Yunus’s recent statement in Malaysia about delivering a “free and historic election. If you are serious,” Taher said, “ensure a level playing field and give the July Charter legal status. If you cannot, then hand over the responsibility to me- I’ll show you how in just one week.”

He urged all political parties and the interim government to engage in sincere inter-party talks, warning against repeating past political crises like the 2007 caretaker government episode. “The people are watching,” he said. “They are more aware now. They won’t accept another rigged or one-sided election.”

The rally was chaired by Nurul Islam Bulbul, with Assistant Secretary General Maulana Rafiqul Islam Khan, Maulana Abdul Halim, Metropolitan North Ameer Mohammad Selim Uddin, Central Executive Council member Mubarak Hossain and others spoke. After the rally, a protest procession from Bijoynagar passed through Kakrail Nightingale intersection and ended in front of the Chief Justice's residence.