Leaders of the banned Pakistan-based Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror group, have openly claimed involvement in last year’s anti-government protests in Bangladesh that led to the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The claims were made by senior JuD figures Saifullah Kasuri and Muzammil Hashmi—both long-time associates of 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed—during separate public speeches in Pakistan this week.

Hasina’s ouster ‘revenge’ for 1971: Jamaat-ud-Dawa  

In a speech in Allahabad, Pakistan’s Punjab province, Kasuri said, “I was four years old when Pakistan was dismembered in 1971. Indira Gandhi had claimed to have drowned the two-nation theory in the Bay of Bengal. On May 10, we took revenge for 1971.”

The provocative statement appeared to link last year’s political turmoil in Dhaka with a historical grievance over Bangladesh’s liberation from Pakistan in 1971, which Islamabad still views as a painful defeat. Kasuri’s remarks were echoed by Hashmi in Gujranwala, where he declared: “We defeated you in Bangladesh last year,” referring to Hasina’s resignation on August 5 after weeks of massive protests.

What Jamaat said about Indian airstrikes?

Kasuri also referred to the recent Indian airstrike on Muridke—the JuD and LeT headquarters—following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. He said a fellow JuD member, Mudassar, was killed in the strike and lamented that he was not allowed to attend the funeral. In contrast, members of Pakistan’s civilian and military bureaucracy reportedly attended Mudassar’s funeral, underlining his significance to the group.

“I was in my constituency when the Pahalgam incident happened. India made me the mastermind of the attack. India made Kasur famous,” Kasuri said defiantly. “We are preparing the next generation for jihad… We are not afraid of dying.”

The inflammatory remarks have drawn sharp reactions from observers and former diplomats. “The rhetoric of Jihadi extremists at their public rallies makes it difficult for the rest of the world to believe official assertions that Pakistan is no longer sponsoring or tolerating them,” said former Pakistani diplomat Hussain Haqqani.

The recent claims by JuD figures may complicate Pakistan’s efforts to convince the global community—especially the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)—that it has severed ties with extremist networks operating within its borders .

(With PTI inputs)