Hezbut Tawheed in 30 Years: A transformative force poised to reshape individuals' lives and the world order.
Bangladesh, a small nation on the face of the earth, has long been subjected to exploitation, oppression, and corruption by both native and foreign rulers. Our sorrowful motherland has endured immense suffering throughout the ages. In the darkest depths of this despair, a seed of enlightened potential was born—its name is Hezbut Tawheed.
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One of the prominent ruling families of the Indian subcontinent, the Panni family of Tangail Kartia, boasts a glorious history spanning over a thousand years. The blood of the true Ummah of Muhammad flows through their veins. The Panni family, descendants of the Sultan rulers of Gour, began the journey of Hezbut Tawheed on February 16, 1995, through the efforts of their distinguished son, Mohammad Bayazid Khan Panni, who brought forth the true form of Islam.
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He began to present a great truth to the people. He said, all the prophets and messengers who have come to this world have called humanity towards the sovereignty of Allah. Their message was unified: La ilaha illallah (There is no deity but Allah), meaning that there is no ruler except Allah. In the present day, humanity has rejected Allah as the sole ruler or deity and instead has made humans the lawgivers of their lives. This is shirk, polytheism. Against this shirk, he raised the banner of Tawheed (the oneness of Allah), calling upon people to accept Allah alone as the sovereign ruler.
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At the very foundation of the movement, Almighty Allah granted him a five-point agenda for the establishment of the faith. This is a famous Hadith where the Messenger of Allah says, "Allah has commanded me five things, and I am commanding you to follow these five things." They are: unite, listen to the leader’s command, obey the leader’s command, migrate from shirk and kufr, and struggle in the way of Allah with your life and wealth. The Prophet (PBUH) told the Ummah that whoever deviates even a hand's breadth from this unity will have the rope of Islam removed from their neck unless they repent and return. And those who call towards anything from the era of Jahiliyyah, even if they pray and fast and believe themselves to be true believers, will become fuel for the fire of Hell. (Hadith: Harith al-Ash'ari, narrated in Muslim, Tirmidhi, Bab-ul-Imarat, Mishkat).
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From the very beginning of the movement, Hezbut Tawheed faced severe opposition from religious profiteers and extremist groups. This was because the honorable Imam revealed a great truth that struck at their arrogance and vested interests. He pointed to the Quran and stated that Islam was revealed for the welfare of humanity, and using religion for personal gain or accepting money in exchange for religious services is completely haram (forbidden). (Surah Baqarah 174).
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However, in the present day, religion cannot move without money. The religious community issued a fatwa declaring the honorable Imam as a kafir (disbeliever) and incited ordinary believers against him. Attacks against Hezbut Tawheed began to spread across the country. Many members were brutally beaten and injured, and their homes were looted and set on fire. The religious profiteer groups used religious sentiment to incite mob violence and implement mob justice against Hezbut Tawheed.
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On May 5, 2003, in Kalakini, Madaripur, young member Saifulah was brutally martyred at the hands of hundreds of people acting like hyenas while distributing Hezbut Tawheed's pamphlets calling for the true message of Islam. In the same year, in Kushtia, a veteran member of the movement, Rabeya Khatun, became a victim of mob killing.
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At that time, extremism and terrorism were on the rise in countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Middle East, and Africa, and Islamophobia was being spread across all media. All Islamic groups were being viewed with suspicion. From the very inception of Hezbut Tawheed, the honorable Imam set a principle that no member of Hezbut Tawheed would engage with illegal weapons or break the law. There would be no covert activities within the movement. All actions would be transparent, as clear as daylight, and all work would be carried out with the knowledge of law enforcement agencies and the administration.
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For the past thirty years, Hezbut Tawheed has strictly adhered to this principle. However, due to the malicious propaganda by Islamophobic media, the movement has faced severe police persecution. Over five hundred false cases have been filed against its members. For months and years, they have been imprisoned simply on suspicion. Despite this, Hezbut Tawheed, a shining example of respect for the law, has never been proven guilty in any case, and all its members have been declared innocent by the court. Even the honorable Imam, over seventy years of age, was subjected to brutal torture under false charges through remand.
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On May 18, 2005, the honorable Imam appealed to the government for a compromise proposal, urging them to stop the unnecessary persecution of Hezbut Tawheed members. However, his appeal was ignored. On April 22, 2009, he again presented a proposal to the government, highlighting the ineffectiveness of relying solely on the use of force to combat terrorism and emphasizing the importance of an ideological struggle in eradicating extremism. As expected, the government did not take his proposal into consideration. Meanwhile, the social and administrative persecution against Hezbut Tawheed continued unabated.
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In 2009, the then coordinator of the movement, Hossain Mohammad Salim, who currently serves as the Imam of the movement, was attacked at his ancestral home by the so-called Tawheedi public. Eight houses of the members were set on fire and reduced to ashes, all their belongings were looted, trees were cut down, and poison was used to kill all the fish in the pond.
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The year 2012 arrived, and on January 16, the honorable Imam passed away, leaving all members of Hezbut Tawheed in tears, but moving on to be in the presence of Allah. He left behind the message—this struggle will continue. Taking this directive to heart, under the leadership of the current Imam, Hossain Mohammad Salim, Hezbut Tawheed began its journey anew. He initiated multifaceted efforts to spread Allah's message of Tawheed across the world. Despite attacks, false cases, and all obstacles, Hezbut Tawheed commenced nationwide outreach activities with renewed vigor.
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To eliminate the roots of extremism, terrorism, communalism, religious exploitation, rumors, religious fanaticism, and malpractice under the name of Islam, proper education is essential. Allah has granted Hezbut Tawheed with this very ideology. Members of Hezbut Tawheed began spreading this message, traveling from village to village, city to city, and port to port. Indoor seminars were held in small and large venues, while public gatherings took place in open fields. Millions of awareness-raising meetings were conducted. Daily newspapers, magazines, handbills, posters, and many books were published. These materials were distributed at book fairs in Dhaka and various districts, with stalls set up to promote them.
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The conspiracy of the religious exploiters did not cease. On March 14, 2016, a horrific terrorist attack was carried out at the Honorable Imam’s residence in Noakhali. Hezbut Tawheed members were constructing a mosque in the Imam’s yard. By spreading rumors that Hezbut Tawheed was a Christian group and the mosque was a church, the religious exploiters incited a mob to create chaos. The mob looted the Imam's house and carried out a destructive rampage, demolishing the mosque. Then, two members—Khokon and Rubel, who were involved in the mosque construction—were brutally attacked with sharp weapons. Their hands and feet were slashed, and they were then slaughtered.
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Despite this, Hezbut Tawheed never ceased its struggle for a single moment. To highlight the true essence of women's freedom in Islam, thousands of discussion sessions were held nationwide by the women’s wing of the movement. To foster interfaith harmony, thousands of interfaith dialogue sessions were organized, bringing together leaders and followers of various religions.
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To promote physical fitness among the youth, the Honorable Imam established a sports organization named Pinnacle Sports. Under this initiative, at least fifty football clubs have already been established across the country. Additionally, Hezbut Tawheed organizes annual events such as marathons, swimming competitions, boat races, badminton tournaments, and various local sports in different districts of the country, with active participation from both women and men.
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In addition, Hezbut Tawheed has established the Mati Cultural Group to promote a healthy and vulgarity-free cultural practice. Under this organization's banner, thousands of events have been organized across the country, where many scholars, poets, writers, and intellectuals have been invited as guests and have encouraged the initiatives.
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As an example of building a progressive and peaceful global civilization, Hezbut Tawheed's Honorable Imam has chosen Porokara, a village in Sonaimuri Upazila of Noakhali, as a model village. Just a few days ago, this village was a remote area plagued by drugs, extortion, and terrorism. However, it has now transformed into a suburban area where extortion and terrorism have no place. The members of Hezbut Tawheed have been working hard here and are changing the lives of the local people through over fifty development projects.
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The mosque that was destroyed by religious fanatics is now a four-story Shaheedi Jame Mosque, where thousands of worshippers gather every Friday. To cultivate a generation enriched in worldly knowledge and moral character, Chashirhat Nurul Haque High School has been established. Numerous agricultural projects have been developed, producing crops like rice, corn, jute, and wheat, as well as various fruits and vegetables. A fish farm, hatchery, and fry production project have been established over nearly 20 acres of water bodies. Additionally, cattle fattening farms, dairy farms, biogas projects, duck farms, garment factories, oil mills, food processing projects, handloom industries, hospitals, and housing projects have been set up. Over fifty small businesses and an auto-rickshaw service have provided employment for hundreds of people. Every year, a week-long trade fair is held at the field of Chashirhat Nurul Haque High School, where products from various projects are exhibited and sold.
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In this way, Hezb ut-Tawheed, while inviting people to the true essence of Islam, has established a model Tawheed-based societal system in Noakhali. Hezb ut-Tawheed continues to propose the framework of the governance system given by Allah, which, if adopted, would eradicate all crises faced by humanity. Hezb ut-Tawheed firmly asserts this belief. By Allah’s grace, Hezb ut-Tawheed is now a prestigious movement in Bangladesh, with activities that have crossed national borders and spread to various countries around the world.
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