Hefazat Ameer Junaid Babunagari passes away
Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh Ameer Junaid Babunagari has passed away today. He was 67.
He breathed his last at CSCR Hospital in the port city.
Hefazat spokesperson Munir Ahmed confirmed the matter to The Business Standard.
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Babunagari fell seriously sick on Wednesday evening. He was taken to the hospital around 11am after his physical condition deteriorated.
He was suffering from various old-age complications including diabetes.
He received the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine on 8 August.
Meanwhile, when the news of the death of Babunagari spread, hundreds of leaders and activists of the organization gathered at the CSCR Hospital.
Thousands of people were gathering at Hathazari for joining funeral of Babunagori. People from different parts of the country were coming in Hathazari to join in funeral.
" We have resheduled the Namaj-e-janja from 7:30pm to 11 pm as his followers, students and Hefazat leaders can join, " Said Meer Idris, one of the spokesman of Hefazat.
He will be buried at Fatikchhari family graveyard at night.
Babunagari served as a prominent figure of the Islamist organisation till his death since its inception.
His name came to newspaper's headline for several times in last one year following internal clashes of the organisation and other issues.
Mainly, he came to discussion after death of Shah Ahmad Shafi, former ameer of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, in September last year.
When Hefazat-e-Islam was formed on 19 January 2010, he became its secretary-general.
Following the Shapla Chattar mayhem on 5 May 2013, he was arrested from the Dhakeswari temple area of Old Dhaka two later. Police remanded him for 13 days on several charges.
However, he was later released as the allegations were not substantiated.
On 15 November 2020, he was elected the new Ameer of Hefajat-e-Islam.
However, his rise to this position and professional life was marred with controversy.
Babunagari was born in 1954 in Babunagar village of Fatikchhari upazila in Chattogram.
He became secretary general of Hefazat-e-Islam in 2010.
He served as a teacher of Hadith and assistant director of Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam.
In 2017, he was appointed as the acting director general of Darul Uloom Hathazari Madrasa due to its serving chief and then Hefazat secretary general Shah Ahmad Shafi's illness.
In June 2020, the Hathazari Madrasa Committee relieved him of his post but in less than four months Shafi resigned from his post on 18 September facing the protests and agitations of students.
Shafi died on the same day and later, a three-member madrasa management committee was formed including Babungari.
Babunagari was promoted as Shaykhul Hadith and Education Secretary of the Madrasa.
On 17 December, Md Moin Uddin, brother-in-law of Ahmed Shafi, filed a case with a Chattogram court against 36 people over Shafi's death.
People named in the case include Joint Secretary General of Hefazat-e-Islam Mamunul Haque, a follower of Babunagari.
The case claims that Ahmad Shafi was the victim of premeditated murder.
Meanwhile, on 23 December, Babunagari claimed that the former Hefazat Ameer had died of natural causes and demanded the withdrawal of the case.
Under Babunagari's leadership, Hefazat members engaged in clashes with police over Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh in March this year.
The mayhem and clashes claimed at least 17 lives between 26-28 March.
Over a dozen leaders of the Islamist group were arrested for their alleged involvement in countrywide violence and Babunagari dissolved its central committee on 25 April.
Later, a convening committee was formed and he had been heading that until his demise.
