BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday blasted Jamaat-e-Islami, saying the party neither supported Pakistan nor wanted Bangladesh, and urged its leaders to apologize for their mistakes committed during the 1971 Liberation War.
He made the remarks while addressing an election rally in his Thakurgaon-1 constituency.
Recalling the atrocities of 1971, Fakhrul said the Pakistani army tortured people, burned homes, and forced many to flee to India. "I lost everything except our house in Thakurgaon city. The underground fuel tank of my petrol pump was taken away, and my father's trucks, which were essential for his construction business, were seized," he said. He added that everyone knows who supported the Pakistani forces during the war.
Fakhrul criticized Jamaat's claims of seeking forgiveness, saying they do not truly want it. "They ask for forgiveness while blaming others and questioning why people fought in 1971. I fought for my country and its independence and am ready to give my life for it," he said.
Turning to elections, Fakhrul emphasised the importance of honest politics and urged voters to support him. "People's votes are very valuable. I have never betrayed their trust since entering public service in 1986," he said, recalling the 2001 election when local women had saved money to make garlands for him.
Fakhrul also focused on education, training, and employment, particularly for youth. He said many graduates remain jobless despite earning BA and MA degrees and stressed the need for market-oriented training, including opportunities abroad. "We don't want to survive on charity; we want to earn and contribute to the country," he said.
Highlighting local development, he said Thakurgaon is relatively poor with few industries. He promised that a BNP government would prioritize agriculture-based factories to generate jobs and criticized poor planning in farming, citing overproduction of potatoes and falling prices.
Fakhrul described this as his last election, asking voters for one final mandate. "If you vote for me-even with a grain of rice as a symbol-I will go to parliament and work for the people," he said, adding that his entry into politics involved sacrifices, including selling family land to serve the public.
The rally was attended by BNP leaders and supporters from district, upazila, and union levels, as Fakhrul sought to connect the party's historical stance with his plans for jobs, education, and regional development in Thakurgaon.
