Bangladesh has revoked a ban on the country’s main Islamic party and its affiliated groups.
The Bangladesh government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, lifted the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing, Islami Chhatra Shibir. The government stated it found no evidence of their involvement in ‘terrorist activities’.
Jamaat-e-Islami was banned under an anti-terrorism law. Take revocation takes immediate effect. Jamaat-e-Islami was banned from contesting elections in 2013. The court said then the Jamaat’s charter violated the secular constitution of Bangladesh.
The Jamaat-e-Islami party was banned by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government. The group was accused of inciting deadly violence during student-led protests. The protests led to an uprising against the Hasina government. The uprising forced Hasina to resign and flee to India on August 5.
The Jammat is seen as an anti-India party with a pro-Pakistan stance. The Hasina government had cracked down on anti-India terrorist outfits. These outfits operating from Bangladesh had lost support during Hasina’s tenure.
Jamaat-e-Islami was founded in 1941 during British colonial rule by a controversial Islamist scholar. The party opposed the creation of Bangladesh during the 1971 independence war with Pakistan.
