Bangladesh MP would ‘gladly accept death penalty’ after killing French President Macron

Narayanganj 3 MP Liyakot Hossain Khoka has said he will gladly accept the death penalty after he kills Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, for insulting the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

His rant, which has gone viral on social media, comes amid the tension between the Muslim world and France over cartoon caricatures of the Prophet.

The lawmaker made the comment on Monday night while addressing a discussion on the life and work of the late Shah Ahmad Shafi of Hefazat-e-Islam, at the Aminpur ground in Sonargaon municipality of Narayanganj. 

A near 13 minute video of the rant was uploaded the next day on a Facebook page many believe is run by the MP himself.

Liyakot said: “I am speaking not as a member of parliament but as a Muslim. I want to tell this to the president of France — if you were in front of me today, I would have killed you and walked to the gallows with a smile on my face.”

He also appealed to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to sever diplomatic ties with France.

“You [Sheikh Hasina] were born in a Muslim family. Your father was a true Muslim; he has done a lot for the Muslim community. You yourself do not go to sleep without offering tahajjud prayers first. As a member of parliament, I urge you to renounce diplomatic relations with France,” he said.

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The MP continued: “A session of parliament has been called on November 8. Please raise a proposal during this session to cancel the diplomatic ties with France, we will be on your side. Also, propose a new law in the parliament to issue the death penalty against those who insult my Prophet (PBUH).”

The video, which has already gone viral on social media, received mixed reactions. Some have rebuked such a declaration from a lawmaker, while some have praised his words.

Liyakot Hossain Khoka is currently serving his second term as an MP. He was elected as a lawmaker for the first time from Jatiya Party on January 5, 2014. He was elected for the second time in 2018.

He was a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources in the 10th Parliament and is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Commerce in the 11th Parliament.

He is currently a presidium member of the Jatiya Party, additional secretary general (Dhaka Division) and the president of the Jatiya Swechchhasebak Party Central Committee.

Protests in Muslim countries, including Bangladesh, calling for a boycott of French products over a caricature of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) published by a French magazine are ongoing. 

President Emmanuel Macron criticized Islamists and vowed not to "give up cartoons" depicting Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Macron's comments came in response to the beheading of a teacher, Samuel Paty, outside his school in a suburb outside Paris earlier last month, after he had shown cartoons of Prophet Mohammed during a class he was teaching on free speech

On Monday, Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the government to shut down the Embassy of France in Dhaka.