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and contesting for change. But we are not alone. Allah is with us, patriotic people are with us, and those who love Islam are with us.”

Drawing a distinction between local and national elections, the Charmonai Pir said local polls focus on development and public welfare, while national elections determine who formulates laws in parliament. Therefore, ideology matters most in national polls, he added.

He also said both the BNP-led alliance and the Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance have announced plans to govern under the existing democratic and legal framework if elected.

“But this system has failed to bring peace or freedom in the past,” he said.

The rally was presided over by Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Nabinagar unit president Jasim Uddin Sarkar, while the party’s Brahmanbaria-5 (Nabinagar) candidate, Nazrul Islam Nazu, was the main attraction.

At the end of the rally, Rezaul Karim symbolically handed over the party’s election symbol -- the hand fan -- to the candidate and urged voters to cast their ballots for peace.