Poet and thinker Farhad Mazhar has said that Mahfuj Alam, widely regarded as the mastermind behind the student protests that toppled the Awami League government, is a product of deep-rooted societal unrest rather than an isolated figure.
“If anyone thinks Mahfuj Alam stands alone, they are gravely mistaken," Farhad wrote in a Facebook post on Saturday.
"Those of us who stand with him will continue to support him because Mahfuj did not simply spring up overnight. The youth have emerged from societal turmoil—they are our future. Understand society, and you will understand Mahfuj. It takes decades for a society to produce a Mahfuj, or an Akhter, Nahid, Asif, Nusrat, Akram, Arif, Jahid, Tushar, Umama, Hasnat, Sarjis, Nazifa, Abu Baker, Tariqul, and Sanjana," he said.
Following the strong student-led movement that led to the fall of the Awami League government, an interim government was formed on August 8, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.
On August 25, during an event in New York, Yunus, while conversing with his longtime friend Bill Clinton, highlighted Mahfuj Alam as a key figure in the anti-discrimination student movement that toppled the government.
However, debates have surfaced about whether labeling Mahfuj as the mastermind diminishes the contributions of others involved or if this is yet another case of a political figure being manufactured into a hero.
In response to this, Mahfuj wrote on Facebook on September 14, saying that while he has been described as the mastermind of the movement, he does not see himself as such.
Mahfuj, originally from Ramganj in Lakshmipur, was a law student at Dhaka University, enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.
On campus, he is known as a leading thinker within the Democratic Student Force (DSF), the organization that spearheaded the anti-discrimination student movement.
On August 28, the government appointed him as a special assistant to the chief adviser.
In his post, Farhad Mazhar cautioned against disparaging the student leaders, saying: “Those of us who speak about the present while keeping an eye on the future understand the significance of the mental leap made by the youth. Bangladesh will not turn back. Be assured of that. Our role is to support them, pointing out any errors that come from inexperience, and help them evolve into a more unified political force. None of us are perfect."
He further said: “As a political entity, we must stand tall on the global stage. This will not be an easy feat, given the challenges posed by geopolitics and the neoliberal capitalist system. But Bangladesh is prepared. There are tougher battles yet to come.”
