Jamaat expels MP Gazi Nazrul Islam

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has expelled its Member of Parliament for the Satkhira-4 constituency, Gazi Nazrul Islam, from the party. The decision was taken after an internal organizational investigation found evidence supporting allegations of moral turpitude against him.

The ruling was finalized during an emergency meeting of Jamaat-e-Islami's Central Executive Council held at the official residence of the Leader of the Opposition on Minto Road in the capital on Wednesday (July 22). The meeting was presided over by the party's Ameer, Dr. Shafiqur Rahman.

According to a statement released by Jamaat-e-Islami, the allegations published in various media outlets involving Gazi Nazrul Islam were investigated thoroughly through internal organizational channels. Upon verifying the authenticity of the charges regarding moral turpitude, the party executed his expulsion in accordance with Article 62 of the party's constitution.

The party further decided that the decision to expel Gazi Nazrul Islam will be communicated to the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) immediately.The whole incident began on Tuesday (July 21) after some videos of Gazi Nazrul Islam with a young woman at a residential hotel went viral on social media. After the video went viral, he claimed that the young woman was his second wife, although there was no mention of a second marriage in his affidavit. On the same day, Jamaat's Assistant Secretary General and Secretary of the Central Propaganda and Media Department, Advocate Ehsanul Mahbub Zubair, said in a statement that action will be taken as per organizational rules after collecting information and data on the allegations.

Among them, a person named Obaidur Rahman, who identified himself as Gazi Nazrul Islam's former driver and personal assistant, filed a written petition to the Prime Minister alleging attempted murder against Gazi Nazrul Islam and three others. In the petition, he claimed that he was attacked with a stick on the night of July 14 in Pallavi in ​​the capital, and since that incident, he has been in hiding due to fear of death. The petition also alleges corruption and land grabbing against the MP.

On the other hand, local residents in Shyamnagar protested, declaring Gazi Nazrul Islam undesirable and demanded his expulsion from parliament.

Questions have also been raised about the Kabinnama surrounding the claim of a second marriage. Gazi Nazrul Islam claims that his marriage with the young woman was consummated on June 17. However, Kazi Maulana BAM Baki Billah, who registered the Kabinnama, said that he was not aware of where or how the marriage took place. According to him, he was informed over the phone late last Monday night that the marriage had taken place in Dhaka and that he would be responsible for registering the Kabinnama; the bride's father agreed over the phone, and the next morning the bride and her guardian went to his office and signed the Kabinnama. He said that he was also instructed to mention June 17 as the date of the marriage over the phone.

In addition, although Maryam's birth date in the Kabinnama is May 22, 2008, one of her biodata shows that she is single on June 22, with Gazi Nazrul Islam's signature and recommendation, which has raised doubts about the actual date of marriage. Despite repeated attempts to find out about this, Gazi Nazrul Islam did not respond. On the other hand, Gazi Nazrul Islam's first wife, the young woman who claimed to be his second wife, and her father claimed in separate video messages that they were married with a family dowry of three lakh taka, and that propaganda is being spread about this.