Staff Reporter :Islami Andolon Bangladesh organized a big rally in the city’s Paltan area after the Jumma prayers on Friday demanding capital punishment to Abdul Latif Siddiqui for his derogatory remarks against Hajj and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).The party announced a three-month programmes demanding enactment of a law with a provision of death penalty as the highest punishment for atheists.As part of it, the Islamic party will hold rallies and other programmes between December 9 and March 18. They will also submit a memorandum to the President in this regard during the period.Mufti Syed Rezaul Karim, Pir of Charmonai and Chief of the party, declared the programme from a rally that began in front of the North Gate of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque around 2:30pm.Earlier, the party failed to get the permission for a rally at Suhrawardy Uddyan in the capital.In a press conference on Thursday, Presidium member of the organization Maulana Mosaddeque Billah warned that the party would enforce countrywide Hartal on Sunday if the government did not allow holding its scheduled rally on Friday. Around 5,000 activists took part at the rally in protest against the sacked Minister Abdul Latif Siddiqui’s remarks about Hajj and the Prophet.Vehicular movement stretching from the mosque’s North Gate to the Dainik Bangla intersection remain suspended following their programme.The demonstrators were cordoned off by the law enforcers, who also kept a water canon vehicle ready to face any anarchic situation.The law enforcers also put barricades at Paltan intersection to avert any untoward incident.Islami Andolon announced the grand rally on November 24, a day after Latif returned home from India.On the same day, the former Minister was sent to jail on his surrender to a police station in a case filed for hurting religious sentiments through his comments demeaning hajj.The ex-minister faces 22 cases in 18 districts for hurting Muslims’ religious sentiments. Of those, eight were filed in Dhaka. Arrest warrants were issued in four cases.He was sacked from the Cabinet on October 12 following his comments against Hajj and Tabligh Jamaat at a programme in New York on September 28.Later, he was expelled from the AL presidium and primary membership.Assistant Commissioner of Motijheel Zone of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Md Saiful said that the rally was very peaceful.
