Budget favours businessmen over 18 crore people, alleges Jamaat MP

Opposition lawmaker Shahjahan Chowdhury today
(27 June) said Finance Minister presented a businessmen-friendly budget instead
of one reflecting the interests of the country's 18 crore people.
"You are from a business family. So, you
gave a business-friendly budget," he told Parliament, pointing at the
finance minister.
The Jamaat-e-Islami MP, elected from
Chattogram-15 constituency, made this remark, participating in the discussion
on the proposed national budget for 2026-2027 fiscal year in the House.
Shahajan Chowdhury said the current Parliament
carries unprecedented expectations from the people of Bangladesh.
"This Parliament is not like those of the
past 54 years. Eighteen crore people have formed this Parliament with enormous
hopes and aspirations," he said.
Referring to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's
recent visits to Malaysia and China, Shahjahan said the unanimous adoption of a
thanksgiving motion in Parliament reflected the spirit of Opposition Leader Dr
Shafiqur Rahman's slogan, "Let's build Bangladesh together."
Talking about the budget, he said he had
expected a people-oriented budget from a person who had served as president of
the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry and chairman of the Chittagong
Stock Exchange.
"But you did not present a budget for 18
crore people….Is Bangladesh only for businessmen? No. Bangladesh belongs to its
18 crore people—farmers, workers, labourers and people from all walks of
life," said Shahjahan Chowhdury.
He also recalled former finance minister M
Saifur Rahman, saying he used to consult opposition leaders before finalising
the national budget and sought their cooperation.
The Jamaat MP questioned whether those who
prepared the current budget reflected the spirit of the July movement, alleging
that many of the same officials who had prepared budgets during the previous
Awami League government were involved in drafting the current one.
Emphasising the importance of agriculture, he
urged the government to increase budgetary allocations for the sector, saying
Bangladesh cannot survive without its farmers.
With domestic gas demand rising, he also
proposed increasing allocations for gas exploration in the Bay of Bengal,
noting that gas is extracted from nearby offshore areas by neighbouring
country.
The Jamaat MP also criticised Home Minister
Salahuddin Ahmed over his remarks regarding Jamaat-e-Islami, saying people in
Chattogram now joke that there is no need to go to madrasas for religious
verdicts as "fatwas are now being issued in Parliament.
Referring to the home minister's comments that
Jamaat-e-Islami is not an Islamic party, Shahjahan said there was no need for
anyone to issue a religious verdict on the matter.
"To understand Jamaat-e-Islami, one has to
know its 100-year history. Whether it is an Islamic party or something else
does not require anyone's fatwa," he said.
In a sarcastic remark apparently aimed at the
home minister, Shahjahan said, "People in Chattogram now call him the
modern-day Mufti, but he does not even know Alif, Ba, Ta."
The opposition MP also alleged that although
four months have passed since the current government assumed office, it has
failed to stop corruption in the power sector in the name of capacity charge,
while people are still not receiving uninterrupted electricity services.
He further alleged that Tk85,000 crore had
looted from Islami Bank and claimed that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
and her sister Sheikh Rehana had laundered large sums of money abroad, alleging
that the finance minister did not mention those issues in his budget speech.
Shahjahan also criticised the government for
failing to outline an effective strategy to combat corruption, claiming it had
yet to reconstitute the Anti-Corruption Commission and had instead reduced
allocations for anti-corruption efforts.
He urged the government to increase allocations
for several ministries, particularly the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and
Overseas Employment.
The Jamaat lawmaker also called for the
modernisation of Chattogram Port, saying large vessels still cannot berth
directly at the port, increasing costs and reducing efficiency.
"We have to modernise Chattogram Port and
develop it along the lines of Singapore," he said, recalling that former
Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia had declared Chattogram the country's
commercial capital.
















