The last time Akhtar Hossain and Nahid Islam launched a political platform, it was hardly such a marquee event. It was back in October 2023, with the authoritarian regime of Sheikh Hasina still looking as strong as ever, continuing to defy the opposition's conditions for an inclusive and participatory democratic election the following January. The two politically conscious students, part of a generation that had grown up understandably disillusioned by the political landscape in Bangladesh, could hardly have known what a worthwhile step they were taking.

Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti, or Democratic Students Force, was meant to be a student-centric platform, and it was in fact a splinter group of the Bangladesh Chhatra Odhikar Parishad founded by Nurul Huq Nur, that had successfully (at least partly) led the 2018 Quota Reform Movement. Akhtar was the only other non-Chhatra League candidate elected in the DUCSU election of 2019, that was held after 28 years. By 2023, Nur himself had moved on to national politics, and cracks had started developing in the organisation he founded. After corruption allegations surfaced against the movement's then leaders, Akhtar, Nahid and other Asif Mahmud and others decided to quit to form a new students' party.

Along with participants from Mahfuj Alom's Gurubar Adda, a study circle at DU, they launched 'Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti (Democratic Student Power)'. The leaders and activists who joined Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti quickly gained popularity among general students on the university campus. Many of the coordinators of the movement, and later the anti-discrimination students movement and through the Quota Reform Movement are expected to be members of the new party.

The number of members of the founding committee of the new political party has not been finalised yet. However, the committee will have an equal number of leaders from the Jatiya Nagorik Committee and Anti-Discrimination Student Movement regardless of the size of the committee.

Names of leaders nominated for the top posts (at least six or more) of the new party, expected to be christened as Jatiyo Nagorik Party(JNP), will be announced at the inaugural ceremony to be held on Friday at the Manik Mia Avenue of the capital, a reliable leader confirmed adding, "Names of other members of the committee will be announced later."

However, there have been reports that Nahid Islam and Akhter Hossain have been finalised as the convener and member secretary respectively. Besides, it is almost confirmed that Sarjis Alam and Hasnat Abdullah will serve the new party as the chief coordinator and spokesperson respectively.

After resigning from the interim government as information and broadcasting adviser, Nahid Islam has said he will have a more vibrant role on the streets to consolidate the forces of the mass-uprising.

While speaking to the media at the chief adviser's official residence Jamuna on Tuesday, the former adviser said he resigned in order to work from the ground to execute the promises of the mass-uprising.

He served two ministries and some additional duties throughout the last six months. Describing the tenure as 'very short', he noted that he tried his level best to serve his duties and that it is up to the people now to assess his efforts.

During the briefing , he was accompanied by the chief adviser's press secretary, Shafiqul Alam. In response to a query, he clarified that he aspires to join the new political party.

According to the chief adviser's office, Nahid Islam stepped down as adviser to the information and broadcasting ministry and the post, telecommunication, and information technology ministry at noon on Tuesday.

The Akhter-Nahid partnership

Of all the young men and women that Bangladesh became so enamoured with in July 2024, Nahid Islam was perhaps the most compelling. He became a household name in July 2024 when he was kidnapped and tortured by the country's intelligence services. Recounting the incident, he said that on the night of July 19, around 30 plainclothes officers showed up at his friend's house where he was hiding to avoid arrest for his role in the ongoing anti-quota protests. "They put a black cloth on my head and told me the world will never see you again."

Later he was picked up again, in that infamous stunt by the Detective Branch under Harun or Roshid, in the name of being provided 'protection'. He came out and announced the movement's 1-point demand for Sheikh Hasina and the government to resign.

Born in 1998, Nahid has a history of being a government critic. In his first week of university in 2017, the Dhaka-born son of a teacher took part in protests against a coal plant on the edge of the Sundarbans, a mangrove forest on the border with India.

Many people don't know Akhtar had meanwhile been arrested prior to Nahid, on July 17 itself. Two years ago on the day of DSF's launch, Akhtar was severely beaten by members of the Chhatra League. No such dangers this time around.

A law student, during the 2024 movement, Akhtar was detained by police on July 17 ahead of a coffin procession at Dhaka University's TSC area. He was released on August 5 after the fall of Sheikh Hasina.

On September 13, 2024, Akhtar was appointed member secretary of the Jatiyo Nagorik Committee.

The Jatiya Nagorik Committee is leading the process of forming the new party. The platform will exist even after the formation of the new party. The activities of the platform will be conducted from its current office in the capital's Banglamotor. The new party will take office somewhere else.

The Nagorik Committee held a meeting at their Banglamotor office yesterday. There were discussions regarding the future of the platform in the meeting. Several decisions were taken in the meeting, including dissolving all the organograms of the platform - executive committees, cells and search committees except the posts of convener, member secretary, spokesperson and chief coordinator.

The membership of all central committee members who are going to join the new party will be in effect till declaration of the new party on Friday. The membership of the Jatiya Nagorik Committee will be revoked as soon as the new party is formed. However, those who will not join the new party will continue to be the member of Jatiya Nagorik Committee.

Besides, the convener, member secretary, spokesperson, and chief coordinator will serve unofficially for 15 days from 28 February. A three-member official forum will be formed at their initiative, which will finalise the future organogram of the platform.

The Nagorik Committee will accomplish a historic task of forming a new political party on 28 February. The committee will remain as a civil-political platform after the formation of the new party. However, it won't take any initiative to form another party.

The Jatiya Nagorik Committee has appealed to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) for permission to hold the inauguration ceremony, which it duly received. As part of the preparation for this programme, several sub-committees have been formed to distribute tasks, Nagorik Committee spokesperson Samantha Sharmin.

Shibir leaders excluded

Meanwhile, the name of Ali Ahsan Zonayed, former president of Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir Dhaka University Unit, was in discussion for the post of senior joint convener of the new party. However, on Tuesday (Feb. 26) he declared in a Facebook post that he won't be in the new party.

Sharing that post, another former president of the DU unit of Shibir Rafe Salman Rifat also announced to be out of the new party.

It has been learned that another former Shibir leader Arefin Mohammad Hezbollah won't be any part of the new party to be formed either. He has already resigned from the post of the assistant spokesperson of the Jatiya Nagorik Committee. However, several other former Shibir activists are going to join the new party despite those three leaders omitting their names, a reliable leader of the Jatiya Nagorik Committee said.

Meanwhile, names of Jatiya Nagorik Committee convener Nasiruddin Patwary and spokesperson Samantha Sharmin are in discussion for the posts of senior joint convener and senior joint member secretary respectively. Besides, Jatiya Nagorik Committee leaders Sarwar Tushar, Tasnim Zara and Ariful Islam Adeeb and Anti-discrimination student movement leader Abdul Hannan Masud and a few others are likely to get significant posts.

A student wing?

Prior to JNP's launch on Friday, a new student organization, "Bangladesh Gonotantrik Chhatra Songshod" was launched by former coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.

Abu Bakar Mazumder has been appointed as the convener of the organization, while Zahid Ahsan has been named the member secretary.

The organization's name was announced at Madhur Canteen of Dhaka University on Wednesday. Additionally, Tahmid Al Mudassir has been assigned as the chief organizer, and Ashrefa Khatun has been given the responsibility of spokesperson.

At the same event, the committee for Dhaka University was also announced, with Abdul Kader appointed as the convener and Mohir Alam as the member secretary.

Meanwhile, a group of students from private universities staged a protest at Madhur Canteen of Dhaka University, alleging that they were being excluded from the new student organization. This led to some untoward scenes at the launch. Around 5:15pm, when former SAD coordinator Abu Baker Majumder, now convener of the Bangladesh Gonotantrik Chhatra Sangsad, was announcing the new student body's name and leadership, the private university students surrounded him before he could finish, and a scuffle broke out.

The demonstrators demanded the inclusion of Rifat Rashid, a DU student who was a July Movement coordinator, in the committee. He, however, was already included in the leadership but not in the position he desired.

It is not yet known why private university students fought for a DU student's position while protesting for their own recognition.

Members of the new student body then brought out a procession from Madhur Canteen, but a clash ensued as they reached the Lecture Theatre building. Several private university students were injured. Some were severely beaten up by members of the new group at Hakim Chattar. At least two students had to be taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

It raised additional questions as to whether JNP will be linked to the new student party, after being fierce critics of the current model of student politics, where student organisations operate on the blessings of some mother organisation at the national level.

The GCS announced its full 205-member committee's names the next day, with 30 students included from private universities.

Ideological space

It is worth noting that following last year's student-led uprising, three student leaders joined the government formed under the leadership of Muhammad Yunus on August 8. The other two advisers are Mahfuj Alom and Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyan. Nahid Islam's resignation has raised questions regarding their next course of action. If these two advisers, either directly or indirectly, maintain ties with or play a role in the activities of the new party, it will undoubtedly invite scrutiny. However, if they can credibly distance themselves from the new party, such concerns may be avoided.

However, beyond the personal preferences of the two advisers, the matter also concerns the image of the interim government. The upcoming election will be conducted under its administration and the presence of individuals affiliated with any political party within the government could raise questions about its impartiality. As a guardrail against such accusations, Asif Mahmud and Mahfuj Alopm may enter into a clause whereby they bar themselves from joining active politics for a certain period after their time with the interim government is over.

The JNP's leadership have been studying the structure, operation and political practice of some youth-based parties in South Asia, including the Aam Aadmi Party and Lok Janshakti Party of India, Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and the National People's Power of Sri Lanka. It should be noted that as a party, its leadership is even more youthful than the parties mentioned elsewhere

Their precursor, Jatiya Nagorik Committee, formed committees in over 100 thanas and 235 upazilas, comprising students, young professionals, former bureaucrats, journalists, lawyers, business leaders, political figures, and civil society members.

Students Against Discrimination also established 50 committees at various levels, including districts and upazilas. The two platforms on February 6 launched a nationwide campaign to know from people what they want from the party.

Under the slogan "Your Vision for a New Bangladesh", five key questions are being posed to the public: "Which three actions do you think would change the country?", "What personal issues do you expect the new party to address?", "What do you expect from the new party?", "What should the party be named?", and "What should be the party's symbol?"

Ideologically, perhaps the easiest way for us to understand what we may expect from the JCP is something completely antithetical to the Awami League. In fact, Individuals involved in the Awami League, especially those engaged in murder, extortion, and the July massacre, will not be allowed to join the new party, according to Akhtar himself.

An line with that view, a strong anti-India sentiment also pervades the new party's membership, perhaps reflecting the new generation it most strongly represents.