Modi, who is seeking a rare third consecutive term, referred to Muslims as "infiltrators" during a campaign speech on Sunday, drawing widespread criticism from opposition groups
AL isn’t forging alliance with religious hardliners: Quader
The government is not forging any alliance with a communal force to please religious hardliners, Obaidul Quader, general secretary of the ruling Awami League, has said.
Published : 13 April 2017, 12:00 PM
Updated : 13 April 2017, 01:46 PM
He made the comment amid concerns after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina agreed to recognise Qawmi madrassa degrees and remove a statue from the Supreme Court premises.
“We have made no alliance with the Hifazat-e Islam,” he told reporters on Thursday.
“We aren’t compromising.”
The prime minister’s decision to grant post-graduate status to the highest Qawmi degree was a “practical move” to recognise the “emotion and education of a large group of people”, he said.
Several Qawmi madrassa-based organisations including the Hifazat-e Islam have been demanding the removal of a figure of Greek symbol of justice Themis or the lady justice from Supreme Court premises.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she too ‘disliked’ the statue and promised to ‘take care of it’ after sitting for talks with the chief justice.
Hifazat chief Maulana Shah Ahmad Shafi was seated next to her at the reception in her official home for Islamic clerics.
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