A heated exchange broke out in the National Parliament on Sunday over who deserves credit as the “hero” and “mastermind” of the July 2024 uprising, with ruling BNP members championing Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and opposition Jamaat-e-Islami leaders insisting the movement had no single architect.
The debate erupted twice during the 17th day of the 13th Parliament’s first budget session, as lawmakers traded points of order over remarks made during the general discussion on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27.
The controversy began when State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Rashiduzzaman Millat credited Tarique Rahman with leading the July movement while speaking on the budget.
He praised the PM’s resolve and competence, saying the nation had reached its current position through his leadership, “even from afar.”
“He led the nation with great intellect and success,” Millat said, adding that opposition concerns over the budget deficit were therefore unwarranted.
Opposition leader Shafiqur Rahman immediately rose on a point of order to contest the claim. He argued that the 180 million people of Bangladesh were the true force behind the uprising and that no single individual could be called its mastermind.
“I do not accept any single mastermind,” he said. “Even when Dr Yunus went to America and called one person the mastermind, I was the first to protest.”
When the session resumed at 3pm after a midday recess, BNP MP Zainul Abedin Faruk returned to the subject, arguing that Shafiqur Rahman had himself called Tarique Rahman the “great hero” of the July uprising at a meeting in Moghbazar on 24 April 2026.
“I want this placed on record in this parliament – what Millat said is the truth,” Faruk said.
“The context of 5 August was different; things had changed by then,” Shafiqur responded. “We want to give credit where it is due. That is the fact. I said it before, I am saying it now, and I will keep saying it.”
