The manifesto and the programmes of the new political party of the students who led the July-August mass uprising are yet to be finalised though the party is going to be floated on February 28.
The Students Against Discrimination that led the mass uprising and the Jatiya Nagarik Committee, formed by the youths that led the uprising, on Monday announced the date of flouting their new party.
Meanwhile, putting an end to speculation over the leadership of the new party, the interim government’s information adviser and Dhaka University student Mohammad Nahid Islam, one of the key student coordinators of the July uprising, resigned from the government’s advisory council on Tuesday to take the helm of the new party.
The party will begin its journey with a 151-member convening committee, and a significant number of members would be included from outside the Students Against Discrimination and the Jatiya Nagarik Committee, they said.
The organisers of the JNC said that they would launch their party at Manik Mia Avenue in Dhaka by reading out its declaration.
The party’s manifesto and programmes would be published in phases, they said.
They said that the declaration would highlight Bengal’s thousand-year history, emphasising its tradition of coexistence across religious and social lines.
It would reflect on key movements and struggles, including the Partition of 1947, the Language Movement of 1952, the Liberation War of 1971, the mass uprising of 1990, and the student-led movement of 2024, they said.
The declaration would also define the party’s ideological foundation, with the rich cultural heritage of the Bengal Basin as a core principle.
The new party would be announced to fulfill the aspirations of the 2024 mass uprising, drawing from past movements and struggles where such aspirations remained unrealised, the organisers said.
Jatiya Nagarik Committee spokesperson Samantha Sharmin on Tuesday said that the outline of the convening committee for the new party was yet to be finalised, but it could consist of 151 members.
She said that it would take time to finalise the manifesto and programmes.
 ‘Initially, we will announce the main party on February 28 without any associated fronts. The fronts, including the student wing, labour wing, and youth wing, will be announced later,’ she said. Â
One of the new party organisers confirmed that Nahid Islam would be the convener and that he had resigned from the government to lead the new party.Â
Following his resignation as an adviser to the interim government, Nahid told reporters that he, in an informal meeting of the advisory council at 1:00 pm, had discussed a personal issue and submitted his resignation letter to the chief adviser.
‘I intend to join the new political party to work on the ground with the people to unite them once again and fulfill the promises of the mass uprising. This is why I am resigning,’ he said.
In response to a question about the top positions in the new political party, Nahid urged journalists to wait until the announcement on February 28.
One of the organisers of the Jatiya Nagarik Committee said that JNC member secretary Akhtar Hossain would be the member secretary of the party and the name of the party would be finalised by Thursday.
He said that JNC chief organiser Sarjis Alam and the Student Against Discrimination convener Hasnat Abdullah would hold the posts of organisers while the JNC convener Nasiruddin Patwary would hold the post of chief coordinator.Â
Youth leaders who played a key role in the student-led uprising that toppled the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government launched their political platform Jatiya Nagarik Committee at the Central Shaheed Minar on September 8, 2024.
The committee aimed to dismantle the fascist system and pursue a new political settlement for Bangladesh.
Following up on the momentum of the July-August uprising, the leaders of Students Against Discrimination unveiled the committee›s expansion plans in October 2024, focusing on district, upazila, and educational institution levels nationwide.
In January 2025, leaders of the two platforms announced plans to launch a new centrist political party in Bangladesh by February.
