There is no militancy in Bangladesh, says home advisor

Jahangir Alam Chowdhury claims that militancy has been eliminated in Bangladesh

Home Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has brushed off concerns about militancy in Bangladesh, claiming that all militant activities have been eliminated.

“There was militancy before, but now there is no militancy,” he said on Sunday, after visiting the Export Cargo Village and BADC Cold Storage at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.

“There is no place for militancy in Bangladesh. There is no militancy of any kind here. With your cooperation, militancy has been eliminated.”

The advisor asked whether anyone could point to one such incident over the past 10 months. “Earlier, when it [militancy] was there, you could point to something. But now there isn’t any [militancy] so you can’t.”

Malaysia has recently arrested Bangladeshi nationals accused of militancy, prompting questions about the presence of militants in Bangladesh.

Responding to such questions, the advisor said: “A press release has been issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in this regard.”

Commenting on the three people who were sent back from Malaysia, he said, “The three who were sent back have basically overstayed their visas.”

Regarding five individuals the Malaysian police chief said were being charged after their arrests, Jahangir said: “We are being contacted at the government level. We are investigating.”

Asked about the Malaysian police chief’s claim involving funding links to Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI, he said: “Bangladesh has no involvement with them. We don’t know what the police chief said on the matter. We haven’t received have any such message at the government level.”