Dhaka, Dec. 13 -- Freedom fighter and former BNP lawmaker Akhtaruzzaman has described the Jamaat-e-Islami as a "patriotic party" after joining the party.

The retired Army major made the comments in a telephone interview with bdnews24.com on Saturday.

Asked why he had joined Jamaat, he criticised statements by BNP leaders about the party's role during the 1971 Liberation War.

"There is no consistency in what the BNP says. [BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman] has said the Jamaat-e-Islami killed hundreds of thousands of people during the Liberation War. The statement is not correct. We fought the Liberation War against the Pakistani army -- we didn't fight it against Jamaat," said Akhtaruzzaman.

He said his decision to join Jamaat was a ...