Former adviser and current convener of the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), Nahid Islam, has said that the current interim government would not have survived even three months if student representatives had not joined the Advisory Council.

In a recent interview with a private television channel, Nahid Islam, one of the key leaders of the July Revolution, made the remark while discussing the inclusion of student leaders in the government’s advisory body.

When asked whether it was a mistake for student leaders to take advisory positions, Nahid replied,

“None of us wanted to become government advisers. We called for the formation of a national government. If that had happened, students wouldn’t have had to take on these responsibilities. Without the revolutionary force within the government, this administration wouldn’t have lasted three months.”

Nahid also alleged that some members of the Advisory Council had betrayed the trust placed in them. He said he felt deceived by those he had trusted and even warned that he might reveal their names.

Furthermore, Nahid claimed that several advisers have already planned their “safe exit” strategies and established liaison with political parties.

“They (the advisers) have built connections with political parties,” he said, adding, “It was not the students, but political leaders, who bowed down in the cantonment on August 5.”

Following a massive student and public uprising, the Sheikh Hasina government was toppled on August 5 last year. Three days later, on August 8, an interim government was formed with Nobel Laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus as Chief Adviser.

Among the student leaders, Nahid Islam was appointed as Adviser to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, while Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan took charge of the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Later, Nahid resigned from his post and took the helm of the newly formed National Citizens’ Party (NCP), founded by anti-discrimination student activists. He continues to serve as its convener.

After Nahid’s resignation, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting was assigned to another student representative, Mahfuz Alam. Both Mahfuz Alam and Asif Mahmud remain in the Advisory Council of Dr. Yunus’s government.