New Party by Bangladesh's students : Chief finalized, fight for Member Secretary

A new political party is set to be launched under a joint initiative of the Students Against Discrimination (SAD) and the Jatiya Nagorik Committee. Its name is likely to be determined within the current week, while the formal launching is expected to be announced by the end of the current month.

Adviser Nahid Islam is going to resign from the interim government and take the charge of convener in the new party. It is yet to be decided who will be the party's member secretary.

However, Nagorik Committee convener Nasiruddin Patwary, member secretary Akhter Hossain, and chief organiser Sarjis Alam are being considered for the second highest position in the party.

On condition of anonymity, two senior leaders of the Nagorik Committee told that Nahid Islam is all set to step down from the position of adviser and assume leadership of the new party in the current or next week. Two other student advisers – Asif Mahmud and Mahfuj Alam – will continue their role in the interim government for now, instead of joining the party.

The name and other key decisions are expected to be finalised by the third week of the current month, and the party will begin its official journey with a convener committee shortly before or after 25 February.

While talking Nasiruddin Patwary said, the official announcement of the new political party is expected between 15 and 28 February. Akhter Hossain also came up with a similar remark, saying that the official announcement is likely by the end of February.

According to multiple sources, there is a competition for the second-highest position in the new party, while different factions are seeking to position their preferred leaders in the key roles other than the top-two.

Particularly, former leaders of the Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir within the Nagorik Committee are fighting for the key positions, and the same applies to the centrist and left-leaning leaders.

Ariful Islam Adib, joint convener of the Nagorik Committee, told that Nahid Islam is the undisputed choice for the top position, while Akhter Hossain, Nasiruddin Patwary and Sarjis Alam are being discussed for the second position.

The SAD and the Nagorik Committee have initiated a public opinion survey to learn about the public aspirations over their new political party. Starting on 5 February, the initiative – titled as 'Bangladesh in your eyes' – is being conducted online and in-person across different districts.

As part of the survey, the participants are being asked five questions – 1. What three changes would improve the country? 2. What problems in your life should the new party address? 3. What do you expect from the new party? 4. What should the party’s name be? 5. What should be the party’s symbol?

Nearly 200,000 people have so far participated in the survey. Among the suggested party names are some common keywords, including democracy, citizen, justice, and anti-discrimination. It indicates that the majority wish to see these keywords in the new political party.

Samanta Sharmin, spokesperson of the Nagorik Committee, said the name will be chosen based on public input, and the official launch is expected within February.