(Web Desk Monitoring) — Nahid Islam, a soft-spoken sociology student often seen with a Bangladeshi flag tied across his forehead, has become a prominent figure after leading the student protest movement that ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who had been in power for 15 consecutive years.
At 26, Islam coordinated the movement against government job quotas, which evolved into a broader campaign demanding Hasina’s resignation.
Islam gained national attention in mid-July when police detained him and other students from Dhaka University as the protests escalated into deadly violence. The unrest, which claimed nearly 300 lives—many of them college and university students—culminated in Hasina’s resignation and her flight to neighboring India on Monday.
Islam and other student leaders were scheduled to meet with army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman on Tuesday. Zaman had announced Hasina’s resignation and the formation of an interim government. However, Islam made it clear that the students would not accept any government led or supported by the military, suggesting Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus as the chief adviser instead.
“Any government other than the one we recommended would not be accepted,” Islam stated in a Facebook post early Tuesday.
Flanked by other student leaders, the bearded and stocky Islam addressed reporters on Monday, vowing not to betray the sacrifices made by those who died for their cause. He promised a new democratic Bangladesh, emphasizing security of life, social justice, and a reformed political landscape. He also called on fellow students to protect the Hindu minority and their places of worship, committing to preventing a return to what he described as “Fascist rule.”
Islam, born in Dhaka in 1998, is married and has a younger brother named Nakib. His father is a teacher, and his mother is a homemaker. His brother Nakib, a geography student, expressed pride in Islam’s determination, recounting how he was tortured by police and left unconscious on the road, yet continued to fight for change.
Sabrina Karim, an associate professor of government at Cornell University specializing in political violence, described Monday as a historic day for Bangladesh. She suggested that this might be the first successful Gen Z-led revolution, expressing cautious optimism for a democratic transition, even if the military is involved in the process.
