Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher has alleged that the BNP harbors secret ambitions of becoming fascist, asserting that if such ambitions did not exist, the party would have reformed itself to block the path to fascism.

Taher made the remarks while addressing a seminar on “From October 28 to August 5: The Dark Shadow of Fascism and Bangladesh’s Future Challenges,” organised by Jamaat’s Dhaka Metropolitan South unit, held at IDEB at Kakrail in Dhaka on Sunday (November 2).

Speaking at the event, Taher said, “It appears that BNP secretly wants to become fascist, which is why they are preventing reforms that could stop the rise of fascism.”

He added, “Fascism arises when unlimited power is concentrated in one person’s hands. We have changed that, as the people demand. The Prime Minister and party leader cannot be the same individual, and no one should serve as Prime Minister for more than 10 consecutive years. BNP had dissented on both these issues.”

Taher stressed that the interim government’s role is to reflect the public’s will, not appease political parties. He reminded that the Chief Adviser had promised reforms, justice, and elections as the government’s priorities. “Elections alone without reforms and justice would fail to fulfill that promise,” he said.

He criticized the idea of holding a referendum on the same day as the national elections, highlighting the perceived value BNP places on money over the blood of martyrs and the injured. Taher urged the government to respect martyrs’ sacrifices by holding the November referendum and scheduling national elections in February to legally implement the July Charter. “If reforms are not implemented, Dr. Yunus will be zero; if implemented, he will be a hero,” he said.

Presided over by the party’s Dhaka Metropolitan South Ameer M Nurul Islam Bulbul, its Assistant Secretary of the unit Abdul Mannan delivered a keynote speech.

Among others, Prof. Ashraf Ali Akon of Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Rashid Pradhan, Vice President of JAGPA, and Dr. Shafiqul Islam Masud, Secretary of Jamaat’s Dhaka Metropolitan South were present on the occasion.