The Awami League (AL) on Thursday condemned the interim government’s decision to ban the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), describing it as a “despicable and nefarious act” aimed at undermining the legacy of the country’s Liberation War.

In a statement released on its official social media platforms, including Facebook and X, the Awami League labeled the move as “cruel revenge orchestrated by forces defeated in the 1971 war for Bangladesh’s independence.”

“The organization that played a pivotal role in leading the Bengali freedom struggle and the Liberation War of Bangladesh has been banned by an illegal government. This is a tragic and ironic blow to the nation’s history,” the statement read. The Awami League underscored that the BCL, founded by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on January 4, 1948, has always been instrumental in advocating for Bengali rights and self-determination.

“No other student organization in the world has been so closely tied to the birth of a nation,” the party said.

The party expressed its outrage over the interim government’s labeling of the BCL as a “terrorist organization,” saying that the move “This is a serious blow to the spirit of the freedom struggle and the Liberation War.”

The statement also recalled BCL’s leadership in both the Liberation War and the post-independence democratic struggles, particularly following the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975.

Furthermore, the Awami League accused the interim government of “granting impunity” to individuals responsible for killing students, police, and Awami League members since July 15, acts it said amounted to “genocide” under international law.

The party condemned what it described as the persecution of teachers, destruction of the economy, and widespread hunger among the population.

“We strongly condemn and protest the hateful and heinous act of banning an organization with deep historical ties to the country’s freedom, like the Chhatra League,” the Awami League statement said.