Cox’s Bazar, Feb 3 (.) BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed on Tuesday accused the Jamaat-e-Islami of distorting history by trying to repaint themselves as a pro-Bangladesh group during the 1971 Liberation War, despite having opposed the country’s birth, and siding with the then forces of West Pakistan military in the killing of Bengali intellectuals, citizens, and supporting them in their fight against the Indian Army and Mukti Bahini.
Speaking at an election rally in the Jangalkata area of Konakhali union in Chakaria upazila of Cox’s Bazar, Salahuddin Ahmed said that the recent remarks by the Jamaat Ameer, Shafiqur Rahman, amounted to a deliberate distortion of historical facts.
Referring to the comments of the Jamaat leader, who claimed that Bangladesh’s declaration of independence was not made by the sacrifice of former President Ziaur Rahman, then a major, but by Oli Ahmed, then a colonel, Salahuddin Ahmed told supporters “Today, the history of the Liberation War is being told anew in Bangladesh.”
“A party that opposed the independence of this country is now narrating the history of the Liberation War. This kind of nonsense is not surprising. Those who opposed Bangladesh’s independence will naturally try to distort its history.”
Further accusing the party of attempting to repaint its image as a pro-Liberation War group in an attempt to hide its historically anti-Bangladesh stance, he said “They want to establish themselves as a freedom fighters’ party in a new guise. This is fraud and deception.
“They claim to have a freedom fighter, they have brought one into their alliance — effectively hired him — and now they are presenting him as the herald of Bangladesh’s independence.”
Warning that if such narratives went unchallenged, then the Jamaat might one day start claiming credit for the country’s independence itself.
“The freedom fighters of this country will never accept that, and they will protest. The people of Bangladesh are patriots; those who believe in independence will resist these falsehoods,” he said.
Calling it a political duty to confront what he described as historical revisionism, the BNP leader said, “As a political worker, it is our responsibility to condemn and denounce those who spread confusion, misinformation and distort the history of Bangladesh’s independence. I have expressed that condemnation in polite terms, but I have protested strongly on behalf of my party.”
Present with Salahuddin Ahmed at the time were Cox’s Bazar District BNP Organising Secretary Jamil Ibrahim Chowdhury, Office Secretary Yusuf Badri; Upazila BNP General Secretary Hefajutur Rahman Chowdhury, Organising Secretary Shoaibul Islam, and others.
Dr. Colonel (retd.) Oli Ahmad Bir Bikram, is chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has formally joined the Jamaat-led electoral alliance for the upcoming 2026 general elections.
On December 28, 2025, the LDP, led by Colonel (Retd.) Oli Ahmed, joined the 10-party electoral coalition headed by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Under the alliance agreement, the LDP has been allocated seven seats to contest in the February 12, 2026, elections.
The move is significant because Oli Ahmed is a decorated freedom fighter (Bir Bikrom). His partnership with Jamaat, a party that historically opposed Bangladesh’s independence, is seen as an attempt by Jamaat to gain historical legitimacy and rehabilitation.
The LDP was previously a long-term ally of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), but it broke away after failing to reach a satisfactory seat-sharing agreement with them for this election cycle.
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