Shah Ahmed Shafi, the chief of radical Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, yesterday said that he had no conflict with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as both of them are believers.
“We learned that Sheikh Hasina says her prayers five times a day; she even says her Tahajjut prayers [extra prayer at dawn]. So we have no conflict with her,” Shafi, also the chief of Hathazari Madrasa, told an Islamic conference on Laldighi Maidan in the port city.
Like the government, Hefazat is also against militancy and criminal activities. “It proves that we have no conflict,” he added.
Hefazat’s Senior Nayeb-e-Ameer Mohibullah Babunagari, General Secretary Junaid Babunagari, Nayeb-e-Ameer Tajul Islam and joint secretaries Mahamudul Islam and Salauddin Nanupuri addressed the rally among others. The tw-day conference ends today.
“We went to Shapla Chattar [at Motijheel of Dhaka in 2013] to demonstrate against the atheists, who do not believe in the five major pillars of Islam,” he said, adding that their fight against the atheists would continue until the day of resurrection.
“We are not militants. Rather we can eliminate militancy, theft, robbery and terrorism from the country if we are given a month,” Shafi claimed. He also thanked Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal for saying that there was no militant in the country.
Shafi’s platform, comprising Qawmi madrasa teachers and students, and small Islamist groups, placed 13-point demands in 2013 including formulation of anti-blasphemy law and imposing a ban on free mixing of men and women after youths launched an unprecedented movement at Shahbagh demanding death penalty for all war criminals, most of who are from Jamaat-e-Islami.
Hefazat staged two long marches towards Dhaka and held rallies at Motijheel. However, the supporters were driven out of the capital after holding the second rally followed by daylong clashes with the police as its leadership had threatened to overthrow the government, terming it patroniser of atheists, with the support of the BNP-led 20-party alliance.
Later Hefazat backtracked from tough movement, allegedly after negotiation with the ruling party leaders.