Jamaat ameer promises ‘agri-based capital’ for North Bengal if alliance wins power

Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman today said North Bengal would be transformed into an “agri-based capital” if Jamaat and its 10-party alliance come to power.

Speaking at a public rally at Palashbari upazila in Gaibandha in the morning, he blamed successive governments over the past 54 years for failing to protect the region’s rivers.

“Dear residents of Gaibandha, the rivers flowing beside you are blessings from the almighty. However, past governments have failed to preserve them,” he said.

“There was a time when ships sailed through these rivers; now even ordinary boats cannot navigate them,” he said adding that water depletion had left major rivers almost lifeless.

“The water has vanished, leaving the rivers like skeletons in a desert. These four big rivers—the Teesta, Dharla, Brahmaputra and Karatoya—were gifted to the people of North Bengal as a blessing,” he said. Shafiqur added, “Rivers are like the blood vessels of a body. If blood flows, the body stays alive. If a vessel is blocked, that part of the body dies.”

“The neglect and indifference of past governments have pushed North Bengal toward death. If the rivers die, our soil dies, and the doors to our livelihoods are closed.”

The ameer further said that, if elected, restoring rivers would be a top priority. He also said a comprehensive river-revival plan would be implemented alongside the Teesta Master Plan. During his speech, he urged voters to cast a “Yes” vote in the upcoming referendum.

Earlier in the day, Shafiqur visited the grave of Abu Sayed in Pirganj, Rangpur, to offer prayers as part of the alliance’s two-day election campaignFollowing the Palashbari rally, which began around 10:30am, he is scheduled to address another public meeting at the Altafunnesa playground in Bogura at noon.