Chhatra Dal stages protest over derogatory remark on women from Jamaat chief's 'hacked' X account

Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chhatra Dal today (1 February) staged a protest march condemning what it described as "objectionable" remarks about working women posted from the X account of Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman.

Jamaat says ameer’s X account among several hacked in cyberattack

The demonstration began around 12 noon on the Dhaka University campus, where Chhatra Dal leaders and activists gathered to protest the social media post.

The protest followed the circulation of a screenshot of a post from Shafiqur's verified X account that began spreading on social media last night. The post has since been deleted, with Jamaat-e-Islami claiming the account had been hacked.

Addressing the rally, Chhatra Dal President Rakibul Islam said, "After 5 August, Jamaat-e-Islami's perspective towards women has been revealed even more clearly," adding that the deleted post described women who go out to work as "prostitutes".

He said the remark reflected Jamaat-e-Islami's long-standing position, adding, "Through the ages, they have tried to impose restrictions on female workers. Their objective is to prevent women from going to workplaces in both villages and cities."

Rakibul Islam said Chhatra Dal strongly protested what he called the continued character assassination of women and demanded a public apology.

"We demand – Shafiqur Rahman and those associated with Jamaat-e-Islami must publicly apologise to women," he said.

Chhatra Dal General Secretary Nasir Uddin Nasir referred to earlier remarks made by Shafiqur Rahman in an interview with Al Jazeera, saying the Jamaat Ameer had stated that women could never lead his party.

"Following public reaction, he compared working women to 'modern prostitution' on X and later claimed the account had been hacked. We are stating clearly that the claim of hacking within five minutes is not realistic. These comments reflect his own position," Nasir said.

He also criticised Shafiqur Rahman's electoral record, saying voters had previously rejected him and would do so again in the upcoming Dhaka-15 contest.

Chhatra Dal Organising Secretary Amanullah Aman alleged that critics of Jamaat-e-Islami from various professions face abuse.

He questioned how such remarks affected women personally, saying the issue raised serious moral and social concerns.

Referring to the former BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, he said that she was the prime minister for a long time, but some political leaders cannot even imagine women [in such roles]. He said they do not do politics; rather, they create deception and conflict

Joint General Secretary Mansura Alam said insulting working women amounted to humiliating a majority of voters.

"Their party chief has insulted 52% of female voters by calling them 'working prostitutes'," she said, adding that a public and unconditional apology was necessary.

During the protest march, demonstrators chanted slogans demanding an apology and condemning what they described as anti-women attitudes.

The now-deleted post from the Jamaat chief's X account read, "On the question of women, Jamaat's position is neither confused nor apologetic – it is principled. We do not think women should come in leadership. In Jamaat, it is impossible. Allah did not permit this."

It further stated, "We believe that when women are pushed out of the home in the name of modernity, they are exposed to exploitation, moral decay, and insecurity. It's nothing but another form of prostitution. Social media vulgarity, workplace harassment, and commodification of women are not signs of progress – they are symptoms of moral collapse.

"We refuse to compromise with immorality, no matter how fashionable it becomes."

The screenshot of the post triggered widespread criticism from various quarters, including political parties and rights activists.

The Jamaat Ameer later reiterated his party's position on women, saying false and misleading content circulated on social media had distorted its long-stated policies, after the party claimed that some of its leaders' social media accounts – including Shafiqur's – were targeted by hackers.