Rangpur-2 lawmaker and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Amir ATM Azharul Islam said government allocations must not discriminate on the basis of religion or political identity. Speaking Tuesday at Gutirdanga High School in Kalupura Union of Badarganj, he said funds should reach people and institutions that are eligible and called for an equitable Bangladesh.

Teachers from various schools and madrasas raised institutional problems and submitted demands for development at the meeting. They alleged they had faced deprivation in different ways during the previous government’s tenure and called for increased government funding for educational institutions. Azhar said corruption was Bangladesh’s main problem and claimed that about Tk 17 lakh crore had been laundered abroad over the past one and a half decades.

The MP said he would not accept illegal or corrupt money and pledged to direct government allocations and assistance obtainable through NGOs to eligible recipients. He also urged students to combine study with regular sports, maintain good conduct with parents and teachers, and avoid drugs. During two separate programmes, he distributed sports equipment, including footballs, to teachers and students from 22 educational institutions in Badarganj উপজেলা.