DHAKA: Bangladeshi students, who were at the forefront of last year’s protests that ousted then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, are set to launch a political party this week, two sources with direct knowledge of the development said.
The Students Against Discrimination (SAD) group spearheaded the protests that began as a student-led movement against public sector job quotas but quickly morphed into a broader, nationwide uprising that forced Hasina to flee to India as the unrest peaked in early August.
The student group is finalizing plans to launch the new party during an event likely on Wednesday, said the sources who did not want to be named as they are not authorized to speak to the media.
Nahid Islam, a student leader and adviser to the interim government that took charge of Bangladesh after Hasina’s exit, is expected to lead the party as convener, the sources said.
Islam has been a key figure in advocating for student interests within the interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, which has been at the helm of Bangladesh since August 2024. He is expected to resign from his current role to focus on leading the new political party.
Islam did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Yunus has said that elections could be held by the end of 2025, and many political analysts believe that a youth-led party could significantly reshape the country’s political landscape. Yunus has said he was not interested in running.
Yunus’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the launch of the student-led political party.
The South Asian nation has been grappling with political unrest since Hasina left following weeks of protests during which more than 1,000 people were killed.
Officials from Hasina’s former government and security apparatus systematically committed serious human rights violations against the protesters during the uprising, the UN human rights commission said this month.
Hasina and her party deny any wrongdoing.
Bangladeshi students, who ousted former PM Hasina, set to launch political party
https://arab.news/8ma3g
Bangladeshi students, who ousted former PM Hasina, set to launch political party
- The student group is finalizing plans to launch the new party during an event likely on Wednesday
- Nahid Islam, a student leader and adviser to the interim government, is expected to lead the party as convener
Bangladesh sets February date for first vote since 2024 mass uprising
- At least 1,400 protesters were killed in violent crackdown under ex-PM Hasina’s rule
- Interim government promises ‘all necessary support’ for upcoming elections
DHAKA: Bangladesh will hold national elections on Feb. 12, its chief election commissioner has announced, setting the timeline for the nation’s first vote since a student-led uprising that ousted long-serving Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Hasina, whose Awami League party-led government was marred by allegations of human rights violations, rigged elections and corruption, was removed from office in August last year after 15 uninterrupted years in power.
Bangladesh has since been led by interim leader Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, who took over governance after Hasina fled to India, where she is now in self-exile.
In a televised address on Thursday, chief election commissioner A.M.M. Nasir Uddin confirmed the voting date to elect 300 lawmakers and said a national referendum on political reforms would also be held on the same day.
“It’s a relief for the voters; it’s a relief for the country. It’s a relief for the investors, it’s a relief for the development partners and for the political parties and the people who did a massive job in July 2024 by sacrificing their lives and limbs to oust a tyranny,” said Prof. A.S.M. Amanullah, political analyst and vice chancellor of the National University in Dhaka.
Mass protests that broke out in 2024 began in early July as peaceful demonstrations, triggered by the reinstatement of a quota system for the allocation of civil service positions.
Two weeks later, they were met with a communications blackout and a violent crackdown by security forces.
A special tribunal in Dhaka found Hasina guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against the protesters, at least 1,400 people of whom died, according to estimates from the UN’s human rights office.
After a months-long trial, she was sentenced to death in November for crimes against humanity.
The February elections will take place in the aftermath of Hasina’s reign, with the Yunus-led administration banning all activities of Awami League, meaning the former ruling party would not be able to join the race next year.
Minor political tensions now revolve around the more than 40 million voters of the Awami League, as the public speculate “how they would move, in which party they would support or whether they would remain silent,” Amanullah said.
“(But) if you consider other than Awami League, if we consider the other political parties, I think the other political parties are sufficient, you know, to make the next poll participatory, and free and fair.”
Bangladesh last held elections in January 2024, which saw Hasina return to office for a fourth consecutive term. That vote was boycotted by the country’s main opposition parties, which accused her administration of rigging the polls.
“There is a growing demand within the society and in the community that they would cast their first vote after almost 15, 16 years. And that would be an (occasion) of big national celebration,” Amanullah said.
In February, more than 127.6 million Bangladeshis will be eligible to cast their vote. It will be Bangladesh’s 13th election since the country gained independence in 1971.
The long-awaited election process now begins with the filing of nominations from Dec. 12 to 29, which will then be reviewed over the following six days. The last date for withdrawing nominations is Jan. 20.
After the voting date was announced, Yunus pledged to “provide all necessary support” to encourage festivity, participation and fairness in the upcoming polls.
“After the historic mass uprising (last year), the country is now moving toward a new path,” he said in a statement. “This election and referendum will consolidate that trajectory, prioritize the will of the people and further strengthen the foundation of a new Bangladesh.”
For Malaika Nur, a 24-year-old Dhaka University student who took part in the 2024 protests, the elections are an opportunity for young people to formally take part in politics.
“Young people have been showing much interest in politics since July 2024. They showed us how the youth can reshape a country’s political condition. If they have a few seats in the parliament, it can be a game-changer for the future of politics in Bangladesh,” she said.
“I hope this election will be different from the last three elections held in the previous regime. There will be a festive mood, people will cast their valuable votes and will get to choose their representative … I hope the elected government will ensure safety and basic rights of every citizen, and will hold fair elections in the future and will not become another fascist.”
