Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, a religious organisation, has issued a statement containing hateful and discriminatory remarks against the LGBTIQ+ community, describing the draft Education Act 2026 as “homosexuality-friendly.” In the statement issued on 8 February in the name of the organisation’s Secretary General, Allama Sazedur Rahman, Hefazat-e-Islam alleged that attempts were being made to bring homosexual and LGBTIQ+ people into the mainstream through the proposed education legislation. The organisation also accused LGBTIQ+ rights activists of conspiring to create religious unrest in the country. The statement, circulated to the media through Hefazat-e-Islam’s Joint Secretary General, Maulana Azizul Haque Islamabadi, demanded amendments to the proposed Education Act.
In the statement, Hefazat-e-Islam’s Secretary General alleged that efforts were underway to approve the proposed Education Act hastily before the national election and that certain individuals within the government were working to promote the inclusion of LGBTIQ+ people. He claimed that the proposed legislation contained various terms and expressions intended to facilitate the mainstream inclusion of homosexual and LGBTIQ+ individuals. However, the statement did not identify any specific provision of the draft legislation that would allow these allegations to be verified. The organisation demanded that the proposed Education Act be amended in consultation with religious scholars and declared that it would not allow any homosexuality-friendly education law to be implemented.
In another section of the statement, Hefazat-e-Islam linked the LGBTIQ+ rights movement to the commercial interests of international capitalist groups. The organisation alleged that foreign funding was being used to promote LGBTIQ+ rights in Bangladesh and other South Asian countries to expand markets for medical treatment and other services for transgender people. The statement also portrayed human rights-based initiatives as attempts to impose foreign values. However, the organisation did not present any specific research, financial documentation, or verifiable evidence to substantiate these allegations.
Hefazat-e-Islam also made negative claims about HIV/AIDS and homosexuality in its statement. The organisation blamed homosexual individuals for the spread of HIV and claimed that an increase in homosexuality would contribute to the spread of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms. However, the risk of HIV transmission depends on specific routes of transmission and preventive measures; a person’s sexual orientation does not itself cause HIV transmission. Similarly, the claim that antibiotic resistance is directly associated with homosexual identity is not scientifically established. In Bangladesh, where LGBTIQ+ and gender-diverse people face various forms of discrimination in education, healthcare, employment, and social security, the organisation’s statement has raised concerns about further fuelling existing social hostility towards marginalised communities.
Full Statement Issued by Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh
The following is an English translation of the statement issued by Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh on 8 February 2026. The hateful expressions and allegations contained in the statement represent the organisation’s own views.
Date: 8 February 2026
“Draft Education Act 2026 Is Homosexuality-Friendly
LGBT Agents Are Conspiring to Incite Religious Unrest in the Country”
— Hefazat-e-Islam
Recently, regarding the draft Education Act 2026, Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh’s Secretary General, Allama Sazedur Rahman, issued a statement to the media in which he strongly warned that no homosexuality-friendly education law would be allowed to be implemented. We believe that, since the rule of the ousted fascist Hasina, agents of homosexuality and LGBT have been conspiring to incite religious unrest in the country.
In the statement, he said that controversy had recently begun over the proposed draft Education Act 2026. Even before the election, LGBT agents hiding within the government have been desperately trying to secure its approval in haste. They are conspiring to incite religious unrest in the country. The proposed Education Act has employed various disguised terms and expressions with the aim of bringing homosexuality and LGBT people into the mainstream. We have also been observing the extensive criticism and reviews of these matters by renowned researchers and teachers over a long period. We strongly demand that the interim government immediately take the initiative to amend the proposed Education Act 2026 through the involvement of religious scholars.
He further stated that an international capitalist network is constantly active in spreading LGBT ideas, which he described as being opposed to Islam and human civilisation, throughout the world. They seek new areas for investment. Various surgeries and regular medical requirements for transgender people are extremely expensive. To expand business and profits in this sector, they are pouring enormous amounts of money into campaigns promoting transgender and homosexual LGBT people in Bangladesh and various other South Asian countries in the name of so-called “human rights.” We believe this is part of their long-term commercial project. We have also been observing the substantial funding provided to this sector by several Western countries, which seek to impose their Western values on us.
He said that homosexual LGBT people are also significantly responsible for the spread of the deadly disease AIDS. According to the latest information from the media, nearly 50 percent of all identified AIDS patients across the country are being classified as homosexual men (RTV, 1 December 2025). Furthermore, the more LGBT identities and what he described as perverted sexual practices such as homosexuality spread, the greater the spread of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms will be. Therefore, we call upon religious parents and guardians to become aware of homosexuality and LGBT issues.
Statement circulated by:
Maulana Azizul Haque Islamabadi
Joint Secretary General, Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh
References
- Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh — Original statement issued on 8 February 2026.
View the original statement - Khola Kagoj — “Draft Education Act 2026 Is Homosexuality-Friendly: Hefazat-e-Islam”, 8 February 2026.
Read the Khola Kagoj report - Our Islam — “Draft Education Act Is Homosexuality-Friendly: Hefazat-e-Islam”, 8 February 2026.
Read the Our Islam report - Daily Inqilab — “LGBT Agents Are Conspiring to Incite Religious Unrest in the Country: Hefazat-e-Islam”, 9 February 2026.
Read the Daily Inqilab report - Daily Jugantor — “Homosexuality-Friendly Education Law Will Not Be Allowed to Be Implemented: Hefazat-e-Islam”, 9 February 2026.
Read the Daily Jugantor report
