Meetings to exchange views: Proposals made to form alternative political platform

Several demands and proposals, including constituting an alternative political platform, ensuring transparency in the important tasks of the state and protecting the spirit of July-August mass-uprising, were raised in the district level meetings organised by the Students Against Discrimination to exchange views.

Currently, the work of preparing a report compiling all those proposals and demands is going on. Then the coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination will discuss and finalise their next course of action.

The representatives of Students Against Discrimination visited 44 districts, including Munshiganj, Chattogram, Rangamati, Sylhet, Barishal, Khulna, Rajshahi and Dhaka, between 8 September and 18 September.

Students and people from all walks of life attended the meetings and highlighted their expectations regarding the reform of the state to the central coordinators and co-coordinators of SAD.

Prothom Alo talked to five central coordinators who took part in the meetings to exchange views at the district level. All of them said that the issue of extortion was raised in all the meetings. At the same time, they were advised to form an alternative political power with the leaders of Students Against Discrimination at the helm.

Central coordinator Nusrat Tabassum visited different districts of Khulna division. She said all the people are seeking something new outside of the traditional political parties. All the stakeholders of the “second liberation” want steps so that no more fascist power could reappear.

SAD central coordinator Hasib Al Islam, who joined meetings at different districts of Sylhet division, told Prothom Alo that the people encouraged them to form a new political platform.

Another SAD coordinator Tarikul Islam, who joined meetings in Rangpur division, told Prothom Alo, “Speaking to the people at different districts, it seemed to us that they are looking for an alternative power.”

Following the district level meetings, the central coordinators held another meeting with the coordinators and co-coordinators from educational institutions across the country at the Teacher-Student Centre (TSC) of Dhaka University on 20 September. They discussed how the Students Against Discrimination could organise better.

Students Against Discrimination, a platform of students, emerged on 1 July with the demand of reform in the quota system of government jobs. But leaders and activists of many other student organisations were also active at the platform.

The number of coordinators and co-coordinators of SAD is 158. Of them, the leading students are members of another student organisation, Ganatantrik Chhatra Shakti. However, all the activities of Ganatantrik Chhatra Shakti had been suspended on 14 September.

Students Against Discrimination led the student-people mass uprising that ousted the Awami League government on 5 August.

Two advisers - Nahid Islam and Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain - of the incumbent interim government are central coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination. They were also the leaders of Ganatantrik Chhatra Shakti.