War crimes trials are being circulated as anti-Islamic, says Anu Muhammad

Anu Muhammad, president of the Democratic Rights Committee, has warned that efforts are under way to portray the trials of 1971 war criminals as anti-Islamic—a narrative he denounced as both dangerous and deeply misleading.

Addressing a “Citizen Solidarity Rally” outside the Raju Memorial Sculpture at Dhaka University on Saturday, he said: “This is a terrible lie. Most of those killed in 1971 were devout Muslims. Calling the trials of their killers anti-Islamic is, in fact, an insult to Islam itself.”

He called on citizens to collectively resist those who distort history and promote a politics rooted in discrimination and repression.

Referring to the activists of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, Anu noted that many of its current members were not born during the 1971 Liberation War against Pakistan.

“They may not have committed the war crimes themselves, but by embracing that ideology, they cannot absolve themselves of its legacy.”

He continued, “As long as the politics of war criminals survives, the struggle for democracy and human rights must continue. That struggle is essential for building a humane and non-discriminatory Bangladesh.”

Citing the case of Jamaat leader ATM Azharul Islam, Anu, also a former professor of economics at Jahangirnagar University, said: “Azharul was a leader of a wartime organisation tied to atrocities. The charges against him were based on evidence. Even if a court overturns the verdict on procedural grounds, the truth of the crimes cannot be erased.”

He warned that declaring a convicted war criminal innocent amounts to a distortion of history and a betrayal of the martyrs, persecuted women, and freedom fighters of 1971.

On the role of the current interim government, Anu Muhammad expressed concern that it is increasingly diverging from public expectations.

“A growing force is promoting social repression through lies, slander, and historical distortion to pave the way for neo-fascism,” he said.

“Meanwhile, the government’s indifference is becoming evident, as old patterns of divisive politics re-emerge.”

He alleged that instead of protecting citizens, elements within the state are complicit in repression.

“Whenever women, students, workers, or teachers speak up for their rights, they are attacked. Those responsible enjoy impunity because their patrons sit within the government.”

Saturday’s rally was organised by the Democratic Students Alliance in protest against the “impunity granted to war criminal Azharul” and the recent attacks on student marches by Jamaat and Shibir activists at Rajshahi University and in Chattogram.

Speaking at the rally, lawyer Manzur Al Matin criticised the efforts by Jamaat and Shibir to dismantle the unity forged during the July Uprising.

He highlighted the case of Shrikanta, a young activist who had already sustained five stitches to his head from a July attack by the Chhatra League and was recently assaulted again, this time by Shibir members, requiring six more stitches.

“Can unity survive under such conditions?” Matin asked.

He demanded the interim government arrest those responsible without delay.