Jamaat hails and then condemns Yunus

Jamaat-e-Islami has thanked Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus for issuing the order to implement the July National Charter but at the same time condemned his decision to hold the referendum alongside election.

This marks the first formal response from the party which shows mixed reaction comes from the party’s Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher at a press conference at the party’s central office in Maghbazar on Thursday night.

The reaction followed two separate meetings, the first one being Jamaat’s Executive Council meeting. Jamaat met with seven other religion-based parties who have been jointly campaigning for a November referendum after the executive council meeting.

“We were surprised to see the chief advisor finally issue the July National Charter order. I believe he has done the right thing. It should have been done earlier, immediately after its submission, to avoid delay. Still, we thank him for signing the order,” Taher said.

He criticised the decision to hold the referendum alongside the national election, saying: “For the Charter to take effect, the referendum must be held before the general election. By announcing both on the same day, he has created confusion. We strongly condemn this and urge him to withdraw the decision.”

Taher said Yunus’s decision to hold a referendum and election on the same day was founded on flimsy grounds.

He said that like-minded parties’ hope to find a way through the chief advisor’s speech to resolve the political deadlock over elections and related demands was not fulfilled.

On Oct 28, the National Consensus Commission submitted two alternative recommendations to the interim government on how to implement the July National Charter. The recommendations included issuing the July Charter implementation order and then taking people’s consent through a referendum. The recommendation said the referendum could occur before or on the election day. Differences, however, emerged among political parties on the timing of the referendum.

The BNP and its allies favoured holding the referendum and election on the same day.

On the other hand, Jamaat and seven other religion-based parties have been demanding that the implementation order be issued by Sunday and that the referendum be held within November. They also announced plans for launching an indefinite sit-in in front of the chief advisor’s residence, Jamuna, if their demands are not met.

On Thursday, the Advisory Council, chaired by Chief Advisor Yunus, met at his Tejgaon office and approved the July National Charter (Constitutional Reform) Implementation Order, 2025.