In an expected move, the interim govt in Bangladesh today officially lifted the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir. The public security division of the home ministry issued a gazette notification in this regard on Wednesday, as per reports. Notably, the Muhammed Yunus led government already has pro-Jamaat ministers, called advisors.
The gazette notification said that no specific evidence was been found that Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Chhatra Shibir and its associate bodies were involved in violence. The government believes Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Chhatra Shibir and its associate bodies are not engaged in violent activities, the home ministry said.
Jamaat-e-Islam and the Chhatra Shibir were banned by the Sheikh Hassina government on 1 August, at the peak of the students moment and days before her govt fell and she fled to India. The notification banning Jamaat, Chhatra Shibir and their affiliated organisations were issued by the Awami government under section 18(1) of the Anti Terrorism Act.
Just four days after the notification, Hasina-led government was toppled on 5 August and Sheikh Hasina left the country and went to India. The interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus was formed on 8 August.
While the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami has been lifted, the organisation remains banned from contesting elections. It was banned in 2013 from contesting elections after high court ruled that its charter violated the secular constitution of the Muslim-majority country. The High Court had declared the registration of Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party illegal. Therefore, the party was barred from contesting polls in 2014, 2018 and 2024.
In November last year, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh upheld the order, dismissing an appeal filed by Jamaat-e-Islami challenging the High Court verdict that scrapped its registration with the Election Commission as a political party.
