Opposition Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Rafiqul Islam Khan on Saturday accused that Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has failed to maintain law and order.
"The current law and order situation has now become the biggest obstacle to implementing the budget and also solving the problems of Bangladesh," he told the House.
Taking part in the general discussion on the proposed budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year in Parliament, the Sirajganj-4 MP said the country's worsening law and order situation was undermining both economic management and public confidence.
Referring to a recent report by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), Rafiqul claimed that 605 people were killed and 196 others were subjected to enforced disappearance during the first 100 days of the current government.
"The 605 people killed include 288 members of the ruling party. If the government cannot ensure the safety of its own party members, how can the general people expect security for their lives from this government?" he said.
The Jamaat lawmaker alleged that although the Home Minister was capable in many respects and spoke on a range of ministerial issues, he had failed in his primary responsibility.
"This is truly a budget that hurts the poor. I don't want to call it a budget for looting, but there is no doubt that it is a budget that will exploit the poor," he said.
He rejected the government's claim that commodity prices had remained stable following the budget announcement, arguing that prices of essential goods had already increased before the budget was placed.
Highlighting recent price increases, he said the price of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder had risen by 28.9 percent to Tk1,728 from Tk1,341. He also claimed diesel prices had increased by Tk15 per litre, kerosene by Tk18, petrol by Tk19, broiler chicken by Tk15 per kilogramme, Sonali chicken by Tk100 per kilogramme and eggs by Tk10 per dozen.
"It raises the question whether our friends in the ruling party actually go to the market," he remarked.
Questioning the government's macroeconomic projections, Rafiqul said the budget projected GDP growth of 6.5 percent, while the World Bank had forecast growth of no more than 4.6 percent.
He also noted that although the government had set an inflation target of 7.5 percent, inflation had already reached 9.42 percent in May.
"So, the inflation target has already failed. This cannot be called a people-friendly budget," he said.
The opposition MP further expressed concern over the growing volume of defaulted bank loans and Bangladesh's rising debt burden.
Turning to constitutional issues, Rafiqul criticised the ruling party for overturning the referendum verdict through its parliamentary majority and urged the government to implement the outcome, claiming that 70 people had voted "yes" in the referendum. He warned that ignoring the public verdict could have serious consequences.
He also proposed changing Bangladesh's fiscal year from the current cycle to the calendar year, running from January to December.
Welcoming the proposed budget's allocation of honorariums for imams and muezzins, Rafiqul called for similar allowances for priests and religious functionaries of other faiths serving at places of worship across the country.
He also urged the government to nationalise Ebtedayee madrasas after proper verification, saying their teachers and students had long been neglected.
While appreciating the government's decision to provide allowances for the families of the July heroes, he called for similar financial assistance and rehabilitation programmes for those killed, forcibly disappeared or abducted during what he described as the Awami League's 16 years in power.
Rafiqul also criticised the government for failing to bring back former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and other leaders of what he termed the "fascist regime" despite being in office for several months. He urged the authorities to return them to Bangladesh and bring them to trial.
Calling for a stronger anti-corruption drive, the Jamaat MP said corrupt individuals could not belong to any political party but were enemies of both the country and its people.
He also urged the government to recover laundered money held abroad and pledged to work towards building "a poverty-free, terrorism-free, corruption-free and humane Bangladesh."