The Ministry of Home Affairs has rescinded the gazette notification that banned the political party Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir.
A new notification in this regard will be issued on Wednesday (28 August).
Earlier, on 1 August, the religious-based political party Jamaat-e-Islami and its student organisation Islami Chhatra Shibir were banned through an executive order.
Just four days later, on 5 August, the then-ruling regime was toppled amidst a mass movement. With the change in power, the order banning Jamaat and Shibir has now been withdrawn.
The original notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs cited the findings of the International Crimes Tribunal, which held Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (formerly known as Jamaat-e-Islami/Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh) and its affiliate, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir (formerly Islami Chhatra Sangha), responsible for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed during the 1971 Liberation War.
It also stated that the registration of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party had been cancelled by the Bangladesh Election Commission following a High Court verdict, a decision upheld by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.
The government had sufficient evidence that Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and its affiliate, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, were directly involved in, and had incited, recent killings, destructive activities, and acts of terrorism.
The government was convinced that Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, along with all its affiliates including Islami Chhatra Shibir, was engaged in terrorist activities. Therefore, under the powers conferred by Section 18(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009, the government declared Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and all its affiliates, including Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, banned as political entities. These organisations were listed as prohibited entities in Schedule 2 of the said Act.
