In a recent interview with Indian news weekly The Week, Mahfuj Alam — currently serving as Adviser for Information and Broadcasting in the interim government — reflected on his involvement in last year’s student-led uprising that reshaped Bangladesh’s political landscape.
When asked about being seen as a “key characteristic” of the movement, Mahfuj responded modestly:
“I wouldn’t say I was a mastermind in that sense. But I did contribute my part.”
According to him, his contribution came largely from years of experience in activism and student organizing.
“Over the past eight years, I was involved in various protests and solidarity campaigns — from 2020 to 2023. Through that, I built relationships with people from very different political and cultural backgrounds,” he said.
This network, he believes, helped him bring together activists from opposing ideologies — including groups that had historically clashed, such as those aligned with the Shahbagh and Shapla movements.
“People from left-wing and right-wing backgrounds knew me. So when the time came, I could help bring them under the same umbrella,” Alam said. “That’s where I had an advantage.”
A major part of his role, he emphasized, was around framing the movement’s language — using terms and slogans that connected beyond the usual political circles.
He argued that the language helped take the movement beyond university campuses and reach everyday people.
“People didn’t always know how to connect their struggle with the students’. We worked on bridging that. Naming, timing, messaging — these were important,” he said.
Mahfuj also pointed to the broader political context:
“BNP and other parties wanted to protest. But it was the students who managed to get the public on their side. That’s why this moment turned into an uprising.”
He identified the killing of Abu Sayeed on July 16 as a turning point:
“After that, private university students joined in, people from all walks of life came to the streets, curfews started, arrests happened. And by August 3, we had to take a clear position on the ruling party.”
One of Mahfuj’s key arguments is that the movement succeeded in breaking the long-standing binary of Bangladeshi politics — the divide between secularist and Islamist camps.
“For years, politics was trapped in that binary. But we built a new language that allowed people from both sides to come together. That played a big role in how the movement grew.”
While Mahfuj Alam does not claim sole credit, he does believe his ability to connect across divides and help shape the movement’s message was significant.
“My strength was in being able to speak to all kinds of people. And in that moment, I used that.”
