Hifazat chief Babunagari meets Home Minister Kamal in lockdown

Hifazat-e Islam chief Junaid Babunagari has met home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal at the latter's residence in Dhaka amid a strict coronavirus lockdown as dozens of leaders of the organisation remain in jail over deadly violence.

A car carried the Islamist leader to Kamal’s home in Dhanmondi around 8:30pm on Monday.

Hifazat Secretary General Nurul Islam Jihadi, a leader from the organisation’s Dhaka unit, accompanied Babunagari, who came from Chattogram, in the two-hour meeting.

They did not speak to the media. The home minister and his aides made no comments on the meeting either.

Hifazat leaders, headed by Jihadi, met Kamal on Apr 19 and May 4 to demand the release of dozens of others of the group from prison.

They were arrested over the 2013 mayhem in Dhaka’s Motijheel and recent deadly violence in parts of the country over Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit during Bangladesh’s golden jubilee celebrations.

The arrestees included Babunagari’s aide Enamul Hasan Faruki.

The police said Hifazat conducted the violence with an aim to grab state power despite being a so-called apolitical organisation.

Amid the crackdown on Hifazat, Babunagari dissolved its central committee. Several leaders did not find a place in the new committee, but Babunagari stayed as the chief.