“They stood beside us when we lost everything. They provided me with money and food to survive with my family. If you try to do anything wrong to me, I will give you a hard time.”
This was the fuming voice of a woman when this reporter asked her about the recent Jamaat-Shibir violence during a visit to Mastarpara area of Patgram in Lalmonirhat.
Not only this woman, but also a number of families are controlled by the Jamaat-Shibir men as they provide all financial support to those families in exchange for support on the streets during the agitations.
In Patgram, four people were killed on December 15 in a clash between police and the activists of Jamaat-Shibir. They also attacked the local Hindus in October and on November 27, and looted their valuables.
When asked about this a 50-year-old rickshaw puller Aziz said they did not do any illogical things. “We only staged demonstration during hartal programmes and vandalised a couple of shops as the police attacked us illegally.”
The Jamaat-Shibir activists stood beside the poor families, who have no property at all, by giving all possible supports including cash, food and education.
It was learnt from locals that during the Jamaat-Shibir attacks in the area on December 15, a number of local people joined hands with them and locked in clashes with the law enforcers. For attending the demonstrations, the Jamaat-Shibir men paid the youths Tk300-500 and three meals with beef for the day.
Abdul Majid, owner of Azad Traders in the area, told the Dhaka Tribune that the Jamaat-Shibir men generally spent higher than any other party for any kind of political programmes.
The Dhaka Tribune came to know that Sohel Rana, 30, secretary general of Patgram union unit Jamaat, controls activities of the party in that area. He also supervises the financial dealings with the locals.
In investigation, it was learnt that Sohel Rana gets financial support from Anamika Corporation, owned by Anwarul Islam Raju who is the brother-in-law of convicted war criminal Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujaheed.
Raju, son of Abdul Majid, was a meritorious student. But because of poor financial condition, he had to stop his education. Later, with the financial support of Jamaat, he had completed graduation from Aligarh University. Raju got married in 1997 and since then, he has got a strong hold in Patgram area. Now he is staying in France.
Jamaat first participated in parliamentary election from Patgram in 2001. In the following five years, they had built 55 new mosques in the area.
Patgram is a union with around 1,40,000 voters. But how can a group of people manage this large number in one hand and carry out violence? In replay to this question Habibur Rahman, the district police superintended, told the Dhaka Tribune that the Jamaat-Shibir activists used to take all responsibilities of a family before and after the deaths. “For this reason, some poor people of the area are supporting the Jamaat-Shibir.”
He said the administration was conducting counselling programmes to tell people about the Jamaat-Shibir activities. “We have already been able to take control of an area. We hope that soon we will be able to convince people about the Jamaat-Shibir sabotages and to raise voice against them,” the SP said.
