Jamaat reacts to Yunus-Tarique meeting

Jamaat-e-Islami has expressed concern over the meeting between Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman in London.

In a statement issued after its executive committee meeting on Saturday, the party said that the chief adviser’s meeting with a political party, followed by a joint press conference, was “in no way morally supportable.”

The statement also said that the joint statement “runs contrary to the country’s political culture.”

The meeting, Jamaat said, reflected the chief adviser’s “special favour towards a political party” and had undermined his neutrality.

The remarks were made during the party’s executive committee meeting held Saturday morning and chaired by Jamaat Amir Shafiqur Rahman, according to the statement.

Describing the Yunus-Tarique meeting as “very unnatural,” the party said that Yunus had already held discussions with various political parties, both separately and jointly.

“When there are many active political parties, it should not be considered right to decide on the country’s overall political issue after holding talks with a single political party,” the statement said.

The party added that the meeting and the subsequent joint press conference had created fears among the public regarding the possibility of a free, fair and acceptable election.

Jamaat urged the interim government to remain neutral and to “create a level playing field for a free, fair and acceptable election,” while also ensuring that “proper measures are taken regarding trials and reforms.”

The party also called on Yunus to clarify his position before the nation to address what it described as public concerns over the government’s neutrality and the credibility of the next election.