Ever-since “India Out” movement was launched in Bangladesh following the January 7, 2024 elections, Weekly Blitz newspaper and I have been repeatedly saying, Al Qaeda-connected ultra-Islamist Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its ideological allies such as Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) and other Islamist forces are behind such anti-India and anti-Hindu conspiracy. As our exposure had put BNP into extreme discomfort as it wanted to patronize and encourage “India Out” notoriety from behind the screen and ultimately take political advantage of its once its spreads throughout Bangladesh, anti-Awami League media outlets such as The Daily Star made foul attempts of discrediting claims made by me and Weekly Blitz about BNP’s involvement.
On February 1, 2024, Mahfuz Anam, editor of The Daily Star gave a huge space in his newspaper to an Islamist propagandist named Qadaruddin Shishir, who wrote a lengthy article claiming BNP is not involved in “India Out’ campaign. He also said, BNP does not have any connections with Al Qaeda.
It may be mentioned here that, the most disconcerting revelation pertaining to Shishir’s past is – during his formative years at university, he was an active participant in Jamaat-e-Islami, an ultra-Islamist militant group in Bangladesh. This is not mere hearsay; it’s corroborated by multiple Facebook posts from Shishir, which were later deleted but have been documented. Such affiliations are not to be taken lightly. They raise a red flag about his current role, given that extremist groups like Jamaat-e-Islami often engage in ideological indoctrination that can have a lasting impact.
In the February 1, 2024 propaganda stuff published in The Daily Star, Jamaat-e-Islami’s activist Qadarudding Shishir made foul attempts of hiding facts about involvement of ultra-Islamist Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which also has connections with Al Qaeda from its recently launched ‘India Out’ notoriety.
It may be mentioned here that, Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s hosting Al Qaeda group including Ayman al-Zawahiri was first exposed by eminent journalist and counterterrorism expert Alex Perry, who in a TIME magazine article on April 14, 2002 had exposed Al Qaeda kingpin al-Zawahiri and other members of the terrorist group’s arrival and stay in Bangladesh.
But Jamaat propagandist Shishir has no shame in hiding these proven facts. Instead, he challenges BNP – a party that is termed as Tier-III terrorist organization by the US courts and a party with direct link to Al Qaeda or being termed as ultra-Islamist party stating: “The original Blitz report was based on a source referred to as “it has been learnt”—meaning no source at all! The wording used when introducing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) says a lot about what the article was trying to portray. In no way can BNP be identified as an “Islamist” party, let alone be called an “ultra-Islamist” one. The loaded language of the Blitz article, lack of any sources and evidence to support its main claim, and the website’s record of spreading political disinformation against independent journalists and critics of the government are enough to debunk its new assertion that BNP has launched a so-called India Out movement in Bangladesh”.
Islamists like Qadaruddin Shishir have no shame. They made frantic bids in denying a plain truth – BNP is an ultra-Islamist force and it is affiliated to Al Qaeda. Moreover, Shishir won’t admit a proven fact that BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman is known by the US administration as a “notorious and feared figure” and “symbol of kleptocratic government and violent politics in Bangladesh.
It may be further mentioned here that, following publication of reports in Weekly Blitz exposing the notorious background of Qadaruddin Shishir, his gang members sent threat mail to me which contained extremely derogatory language.
Finally, the admission of BNP’s involvement behind “India Out” notoriety came from the horse’s mouth as according to media reports, throwing his Indian shawl away, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has called for the boycott of Indian products on March 20, 2024 in front of the party’s central office in Dhaka city’s Nayapaltan area.
“Social media is buzzing with the ‘boycott India’ campaign. There is a public dissent against the import of Indian goods. The wave of boycotting Indian products is visible”, said Rizvi.
“Therefore, as a party representing the people, BNP and 63 democratic parties and patriotic citizens of the nation are expressing solidarity with the boycott of Indian products”, he added.
Rizvi claimed that Awami League does not seek the mandate of the Bangladeshi people, instead “clinging to power through the backing of the Modi government and entering into bonds of subjugation”.
He further accused the Awami League of perceiving Bangladesh as a “dummy state,” alleging that the real power behind the AL is not the people of Bangladesh but India. By supporting the Awami League, India is exercising control over Bangladesh, infringing upon the rights of its citizens”, Rizvi added.
