Hefazat demands ban on ‘Hezbut Tawheed’; 13-point charter reduced to 9

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh has scaled down the number of its demands submitted to the government regarding religious matters. The organisation, which thrust itself into national prominence in 2013 by presenting a 13-point demand to the then-Awami League government, has now presented a 9-point demand to BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) Government Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

Analysing the organisation’s past and present demands, relevant observers note that Hefazat itself dropped some of its previously crucial demands after feeling 'reassured,' while incorporating a few new ones.

Last Sunday, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman undertook an official visit to Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar. Amid his various engagements, the prime minister visited Al-Jamia Al-Islamia Azizul Uloom Babunagar madrasahh in Fatikchhari, where he met with Hefazat-e-Islam's Ameer, Allama Shah Mohibullah Babunagari.

During this visit, the prime minister held a meeting with top Hefazat leaders. At the meeting, Hefazat-e-Islam submitted a 9-point charter of demands concerning religious affairs. Among these, a newly added demand calls for an immediate ban on the organisation named ‘Hezbut Tawheed’.

Previously, among all the charters of demands submitted by Hefazat-e-Islam to successive governments, the demand to declare the Ahmadiyya (Qadiani) community as 'non-Muslims' was a constant. This time around, the demand to ban Hezbut Tawheed has been brought to the fore.

Speaking to Prothom Alo regarding these matters, Hefazat-e-Islam's Central Joint Secretary General Azizul Haque Islamabadi stated that Hezbut Tawheed is distorting Islam and spreading various forms of fitnah (discord). Their activities pose a threat to the nation, which is why the demand for their prohibition has been raised.

Among the other new demands submitted to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is the effective implementation of recognising the Dawrah-e-Hadith degree in Qawmi madrasahh education as equivalent to a Master's degree. Additionally, demands have been made for the trial of perpetrators involved in the 5 May 2013 Shapla Chattar incident, the violence surrounding Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh in 2021, and the July–August massacres of 2024.

The ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government granted Dawrah-e-Hadith the status of an equivalent Master's degree in Arabic Literature and Islamic Studies in 2018.

Following this, on 8 November of that year, Al-Hayatul Ulaya Lil-Jami'atil Qawmiya Bangladesh—the apex body of Qawmi madrasahs—organised a thanksgiving gathering (shokrana mahfil) at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka.

At that gathering, presided over by the late former Ameer of Hefazat, Allama Shah Ahmad Shafi, Sheikh Hasina was conferred the title 'Qawmi Janani' (Mother of the Qawmi Community).

When the then-Awami League government announced the 'National Women Development Policy' in 2011, Hefazat-e-Islam voiced vocal protests against it. The policy advocated for equal rights between men and women in terms of movable and immovable property and income—a provision that Islamic scholars deemed entirely contrary to Islamic Sharia law and the inheritance mandates of the Holy Qur'an.

Its organisers have consistently characterised Hefazat-e-Islam as a non-political organisation. The organisation took to the streets with its programmes, announcing its 13-point charter of demands in 2013, amidst the Shahbagh Ganajagaran Manch movement and allegations of religious defamation.

The primary demand of the 13-point charter was the reinstatement of "absolute trust and faith in Almighty Allah" in the constitution and the repeal of all laws contrary to the Holy Qur'an and Sunnah. The second demand was the enactment of a law in the Jatiya Sangsad (national parliament) prescribing the capital punishment (death penalty) for defaming Allah, the Prophet (PBUH), and Islam, as well as for smearing Muslims.

The most talked-about programme concerning the 13 points occurred on 5 May 2013. On that day, Hefazat-e-Islam initially staged sit-in demonstrations at six entry points of Dhaka.

From 5:00 am after Fajr prayers, thousands of students and teachers from various Qawmi madrasahs across the country took control of the capital's entrances.

At one point, they converged at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel to stage a massive sit-in. Clashes and arson incidents broke out at various spots throughout the day. At night, a joint operation was launched at Shapla Chattar by the Police, RAB (Rapid Action Battalion), and BGB (Border Guard Bangladesh).

The firing of live ammunition, tear gas, and sound grenades by law enforcement agencies created a terrifying atmosphere in the capital, resulting in numerous casualties. Subsequently, Hefazat-e-Islam alleged that a mass killing had been carried out at Shapla Chattar.

Following the fall of the Awami League government in a mass uprising, Hefazat-e-Islam organised a rally at Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital on 3 May last year.

From that rally, Hefazat presented a 12-point demand to the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus. This included the demand to reinstate "absolute trust and faith in Almighty Allah" as a fundamental principle of the constitution. It also called for enhancing the capacity of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) to expedite trials for the Shapla Chattar and July massacres, as well as ensuring the trial of the ousted autocrat Sheikh Hasina and her identified accomplices prior to the national elections.

In the 9-point demand presented to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman this time, the demand to reinstate "absolute trust and faith in Almighty Allah" was omitted.

Speaking about this, Hefazat leader Azizul Haque Islamabadi told Prothom Alo that the BNP pledged in its election manifesto to reintroduce "trust and faith in Allah" into the core principles of the constitution. Furthermore, a bill has already been passed in Parliament to this effect, rendering the demand unnecessary.

However, no constitutional amendment bill has been introduced in Parliament to date. The special committee on constitutional reform has only just commenced its work, which the opposition party is not attending.

According to sources within Hefazat-e-Islam, one of the primary points in the 12-point charter submitted to the interim government was enhancing the capacity of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) to accelerate trials for the May 2013 Motijheel Shapla Chattar incident and the July massacre, alongside ensuring trials for Sheikh Hasina and her key associates prior to the 13th parliamentary election.

Modifying their demands previously submitted to the interim government, a revised 9-point charter was presented to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

It demands exemplary justice for those involved in the "brutal massacre under the cover of night" at Shapla Chattar on 5 May 2013. Additionally, it calls for ensuring the trial of the perpetrators, masterminds, and killers involved in the deadly violence during the 2021 protests against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh, as well as the horrific atrocities committed during the anti-government movement in July–August 2024 under the former Awami League regime.

Regarding this, Hefazat leader Azizul Haque Islamabadi stated that since an additional tribunal has already been established—with Hefazat's cases assigned to Tribunal-2—they deemed it unnecessary to reiterate the demand for expanding tribunal capacity.

The fourth point of the demands presented to the incumbent prime minister outlines the effective implementation of recognising Dawrah-e-Hadith as equivalent to a Master's degree, thereby opening up employment and higher education opportunities both domestically and internationally for Qawmi madrasah students.

Furthermore, it demands that government job advertisements specify Dawrah-e-Hadith (Master's equivalent) degrees alongside public madrasah qualifications as eligible educational requirements for religious teaching posts.

Hefazat leaders allege that despite the government issuing a gazette in 2017 recognising Dawrah-e-Hadith as equivalent to a Master's degree, effective implementation in terms of employment and higher studies remains lacking.

They claim the government has taken no initiatives to enable post-graduate students to pursue higher qualifications despite the gazette notification. Consequently, this demand was newly incorporated.

From 2013 to 2026, Hefazat-e-Islam has submitted demands on multiple occasions across different phases. Several of these demands have remained consistent throughout—most notably, making Islamic studies compulsory for Muslim students from primary to higher secondary education, declaring the Ahmadiyya (Qadiani) community as 'non-Muslims,' halting alleged domestic and foreign missionary conspiracies in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, withdrawing cases filed against Hefazat leaders, and banning Mawlana Muhammad Saad Kandhalvi of India and his followers from attending the Bishwa Ijtema in Tongi.

During the Awami League's tenure, Hefazat-e-Islam exerted significant political clout through its 13-point demands and the Shapla Chattar demonstrations. Subsequently, the organisation navigated its trajectory through a mixture of tensions and compromises with the then-ruling government, remaining active on demands concerning Qawmi madrasah recognition, religious education, and other issues.

Following the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August 2024, Hefazat presented a 12-point charter of demands to the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus.

With the BNP government now in power, they have submitted a 9-point charter of demands to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Although the number of demands has been reduced from 13 down to nine, Hefazat-e-Islam’s core stance and long-standing religious demands largely remain intact.

Nevertheless, the nature of the organisation's demands has undergone subtle shifts over time; alongside religious and educational issues, matters such as justice for past political events and the functional implementation of Qawmi educational recognition now command significant weight.