New Delhi: The chief of Bangladesh’s Jamaat-e-Islami and Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Shafiqur Rahman criticised strongly President Mohammed Shahabuddin due to what he said recently about the political events of August 5, 2024.

Rahman said this after Shahabuddin spoke about the treatment he allegedly faced under Muhammad Yunus’s interim administration after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was removed from power.

President accused of withholding facts

In a Facebook post, Rahman asked the President’s version of events about Hasina’s resignation and departure from Bangladesh. He said Shahabuddin could not tell what he had told political leaders and the public on that day.

“The President has suppressed many things regarding August 5, 2024. He did not acknowledge in his current statement what he told the leaders present regarding the resignation of the fallen and fugitive Prime Minister and what he later told the nation”.

“And he did not say anything that day that he is saying now”, he added.

“Will the President reconcile what crores of people heard and what he said that day and what he is saying now?”

“The nation is not stupid. Such behavior from the highest position of the state is unacceptable,” he added.

Trigger for fresh controversy

Rahman’s criticism after Shahabuddin’s recent allegation that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus tried to remove him from office in an unconstitutional manner during his tenure as chief adviser of the interim government.

The president said efforts were made to destabilise the country and create a constitutional vacuum. These comments opened a debate again about the transition period after Hasina stepped down.

Debate over Yunus tenure

During his 18 months tenure, Yunus faced allegations from Hasina, her Awami League party and many analysts. They said his administration allowed or encouraed radical Islamist elements to get influence after the August 2024 uprising.

Rahman’s intervention has now drawn more attention to political tensions in Bangladesh. The exchange between the President and the Jamaat leader reflects deeper divisions over how the events of August 5 unfolded and how power shifted during that period.