Mahmudur Rahman, the editor of Amar Desh newspaper, has said, "Though the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government was brought about by the uprising of the student community, fascism is still active in the country, and the interim government must take responsibility for this."

He made these comments during a discussion titled "From Autocracy to Fascism, From Mujib to Hasina: The Threat of Fascism's Return and What Needs to Be Done to Preserve the Revolution," held at the RC Majumdar Arts Auditorium of Dhaka University on Thursday.

He said, "One fascist has fled the country, but the allies of fascism are still active. They are conspiring in various ways to destroy the spirit of the student uprising. The interim government should identify and eradicate the remaining fascist elements."

He further noted that Sheikh Hasina's fascism had its roots in her father, Mujib. "We need to investigate not only the fascist terms used by Hasina but also who or what groups established fascism in the country after independence. If we look at the history between 1971 and 1975, we can see how Mujib and his thugs started extrajudicial killings. The first victim of this was Siraj Sikder. He is the only person in the history of the country who, after killing Siraj Sikder, boasted in Parliament."

Describing Mujib as the initiator of state terrorism, Mahmudur Rahman said that Hasina inherited her fascist language from her father. "Hasina is not the only one who manipulated elections. Mujib, by establishing Baksal (One-Party Rule), laid the path for mass killings. It was under his rule that state terrorism first rose in Bangladesh. To establish terrorism in the country, he formed the Rakkhi Bahini, and his ally Sheikh Fazlul Haq Moni famously declared, 'We want Mujeeb's rule, not the rule of law.' In this way, Mujib and his followers paved the way for fascism in Bangladesh."

Mahmudur Rahman also stated that Mujib had curtailed freedom of expression and the media. "Mujib’s one-party rule was the first in the country. He took control of the media, shutting down all newspapers except for four that only praised Mujib. Hasina’s 16 years of fascist rule pale in comparison to Mujib’s three and a half years of autocratic rule. After the revolution, our main task must be to discard the icons of fascism. A fascist has fled the country, but fascism has not been eradicated. We must continue to protest against all fascist activities."

He also called for a fight against Indian imperialism, saying, "To be a good citizen of Bangladesh, one must oppose India. Even if we have academic and economic relations with them, we must raise our voices against their conspiracies."

At one point in his speech, Mahmudur Rahman pointed out several shortcomings in the interim government. "The government does not reflect the characteristics of a revolutionary government. After such a major revolution, how did fascism resurface? he questioned.

"We saw that pro-Awami League officials have gained an overwhelming victory in Bangladesh Bank. How is it possible that after this revolutionary government was formed, they gained such victory? The financial sector of Bangladesh is a crucial area. And in this sector, their allies, such as S. Alam, Salman F. Rahman, and Mohiuddin Alamgir, were siphoning off billions of taka abroad. If we fail to eliminate the rehabilitators of fascism, it will be our greatest failure. If the financial sector collapses, the revolution may be lost."

The programme was also attended by Barrister Asaduzzaman Fuad, Joint Secretary-General of the Amar Bangladesh Party, Rezaul Karim Roni, Editor of Jaban magazine, and Professor Dr. Mohammad Atiar Rahman, a pediatric specialist at the Sheikh Mujib Medical University, among others.