Police are investigating the remarks made by a Union Parishad chairman in Lakshmipur asking women to wear burqa or veil and warning of penalizing people for playing music at wedding events.
Chairman Maulana Khaled Saifullah of Charkadira Union Parishad under Kamalnagar Upazila made the comments recently in the course of a religious sermon.
The comments went viral on social media after a Facebook user named Hafez Monirul Islam circulated the directive against loud music, praising the move initiated by the UP chairman.
Maulana Saifullah claimed that he did not know the man.
“This man is spreading my warning differently by using a fake Facebook id. He is misleading the people. I will file a general diary against the Facebook user,” he added.
When asked, the chairman said: “People can't sleep if the performers sing loudly or when loud music is played on the sound system at night. That is why we issued the warning. People will be fined if others complain about them.”
He added that, as a chairman, he has the authority of imposing fines up to Tk75,000.
According to Saifullah, as a scholar, he had also advised women and female students of the area to wear the burqa when going out.
“If you take your mobile phone to school, your studies will be disrupted. I made the remarks at a waz-mahfil to make the parents aware.”
“My words are not law; rather these are warnings and advice. I cannot go against the law of the country,” Maulana Saifullah continued.
Kamalnagar police Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Solaiman said: "I am aware of the incident. An investigation is underway.”
