Parwar urges partymen to garner mass support for Jamaat ahead of election

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar has called on party activists to build a mass wave of support for the party's election symbol, Scale (Daripalla), ahead of the next national election which is likely to be held in mid-February next year. 

Addressing a roadside rally in Khulna today (15 June), Parwar said, "The High Court has restored our party registration and the daripalla symbol. Now it is the time to reach the people and build strong public support."

Criticising decades of governance by various political parties, he said the people of Bangladesh have not seen the welfare they hoped for. 

"Instead, they've witnessed killings, corruption, injustice, and misrule. Now the people are saying – after trying every party, it's time for Islamic governance," he added.

Separately, in a statement marking the "Black Day for Newspapers" on 16 June, Parwar slammed previous governments for suppressing press freedom. 

Recalling the 1975 crackdown, he said the then-Bakshal regime shut down all newspapers except four state-controlled ones, throwing thousands of journalists and staff into unemployment and hardship. He also accused the previous Awami League government of continuing that legacy of repression. 

Parwar further criticised the 2018 Digital Security Act and its 2023 successor, the Cyber Security Act, calling both "draconian tools" to silence journalists.

"If Jamaat is elected, we will work to safeguard freedom of expression and protect the rights and livelihoods of media professionals, Insha'Allah," he said.