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Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman has said no one will be allowed to run extortion rackets in the country, vowing to end what he called illegal “tax collection” in the name of politics.
Referring to the BNP’s promise of a family card if it forms the government, he said Jamaat was making no such pledge, bdnews24.com reports.
“Can Tk 2,000 solve anything for a family?” he asked, adding that others would then take a cut first -- “rent before anything else” -- before the money ever reached the people who needed it.
Speaking on Thursday afternoon at a rally at Adarsha School ground in Mirpur-10, where Jamaat formally launched its campaign, Shafiqur said he was also the party’s candidate for the seat.
He said the money used by the state comes from the people’s taxes, but beyond official taxes there is also what he called an unofficial private tax.
“Every grocery shop, every street vendor, even those begging by the roadside are forced to pay it,” he said, adding that Jamaat would not only return that money to the people but would abolish such extortion altogether.
Describing how the system works, he said people are stopped and told to pay under a so-called “political lease”.
“If you ask which party, they name one. Sometimes they even say, ‘Just give the money, why do you need to know the name?’” he told the crowd.
“We have declared that we will not take extortion and we will not let anyone take it,” Shafiqur Rahman said. “We will not engage in corruption, and we will not allow corruption either.”
He said Jamaat wanted to build a Bangladesh based on justice for all -- regardless of religion, party or background -- a country for children, youth, workers, farmers and professionals of every faith and community.