Tarique Rahman urges women to decide how to respond to parties that 'insult' them

He says parties that show disrespect to women before an election could pose greater risks later

BNP chief Tarique Rahman has urged women to decide how to respond to political parties that "disrespect" them, warning that a country cannot be “safe” in the hands of those who lack respect for people’s dignity.

Speaking at an election rally in Khulna on Monday, he said: “Today I want to tell all the mothers and sisters of Bangladesh that the time has come for you to decide how you will respond to those who insult you in this way.”

Tarique made the remarks at the Prabhati School field in the Khalishpur area amid controversy over a post widely denounced as "misogynistic" that was published from the X account of Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman.

He said parties that show disrespect to women before an election could pose greater risks afterwards.

“If a party speaks disrespectfully about half of the country’s population before an election, then my question to you is this: if they somehow get an opportunity in the election today, what might their behaviour be like after the election?” he said.

Accusing such parties of acting only in their own interests, he added: “They understand only their own interests. They use religion to protect those interests. Whenever it suits them, they use religion in their own way."

A post, published from the Jamaat chief’s X account on Saturday afternoon, said: “On the question of women, Jamaat’s position is neither confused nor apologetic—it is principled. We do not think women should come into leadership. In Jamaat, it is impossible. Allah did not permit this.

“We believe that when women are pushed out of the home in the name of modernity, they are exposed to exploitation, moral decay, and insecurity. It's nothing but another form of prostitution.”

Screenshots of the post circulated widely on social media, prompting strong criticism. Nearly nine hours later, Jamaat-e-Islami said the post had been published after its leader’s X account was “hacked” and said it had taken legal action.

Rejecting that claim at the Khulna rally, Tarique said: “Experts on this matter have clearly said that an account cannot be hacked in this way. Before an election, a senior leader of a political party is lying openly to the public, and even the party is lying by saying their account was hacked, when in fact it was not.”

“Before the election, they are spreading lies before the people to serve their own interests. They are lying. They have only one identity — they are liars.”