# Nahid Islam

Muhammad Nahid Islam (Bengali: মো. নাহিদ ইসলাম; born 1998) is a Bangladeshi politician and student activist who is the convener of National Citizen Party. He was the central key coordinator of the Students Against Discrimination, which led the July Revolution, culminating in prime minister Sheikh Hasina's resignation. He also served as an adviser to the Interim government of Bangladesh between August 2024 and February 2025. He was named on the Time 100 Next list in 2024.

## Early life and education

Muhammad Nahid Islam was born in Dhaka in 1998. His father is a teacher and his mother is a housewife. He completed his SSC from St. Joseph Higher Secondary School and Higher Secondary Certificate from Govt. Science College in Tejgaon. He studied at the Department of Sociology at the University of Dhaka. His bachelor thesis was on the causes behind the failure of student movements in Bangladesh. He was also a central leader of the Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti.

## Student activism
### Early activism

As a first year university student in 2017, Nahid protested against a coal-fired power plant close to Sundarbans. In 2019, he formed a student organisation called Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti (lit. 'Democratic Student Force') in the University of Dhaka along with his peers.

### July Revolution
#### Quota reform movement

Nahid was a coordinator for the Students Against Discrimination, which organized protests advocating for quota reforms in government jobs. The movement later expanded into a non-cooperation campaign demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government.

#### Abduction and detainment

He gained national attention in mid-July 2024 when he and five other coordinators were detained by the Detective Branch (DB) as the protests escalated. At the midnight of 19 July 2024, he was reportedly taken from a house in Sabujbagh by approximately 25 men in plain clothing. He was blindfolded, handcuffed, and transported to a location where he was questioned about his involvement in the student movement and subjected to mistreatment. On 21 July he was found unconscious and injured, under a bridge in Purbachal. On July 26, he was apprehended at Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital in Dhanmondi by individuals identifying themselves as members of various intelligence agencies, including the Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Detective Branch.
The Detective Branch later confirmed that they had taken Nahid and five other coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination into custody for "safety reasons." Subsequently, Nahid and other coordinators issued a statement from the Detective Branch headquarters, urging the protesters to call off the demonstrations, citing that the movement's main objective of reforming the quotas had been achieved. However, Nahid later clarified that he had been coerced into making the statement.

#### Non-cooperation movement

Shortly, he delivered the one-point demand on behalf of students involved in the movement demanding Hasina's resignation. Following the resignation and departure of Hasina to India, Nahid stated that their objectives were not fully achieved. The group then aimed to "abolish fascist systems forever" and called on Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus to lead an interim government, which Yunus agreed to.

## Career
### Adviser of the interim government

On August 9, 2024, Nahid was appointed as Adviser for Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology to the interim government. Subsequently, on August 16, 2024, he was also assigned the role of Adviser to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

### Convener of National Citizen Party

He resigned as an adviser on February 25 to be the convener of National Citizen Party, with the affiliation of Students Against Discrimination and Jatiya Nagorik Committee. In 28 he was officially designated as the convener of new party.
In his inaugural speech, Islam declared that there would be no place for pro-India or pro-Pakistan politics in Bangladesh and acknowledged that his party would focus on the national interests of Bangladeshi people with a self-reliant economy. He also outlined his party's goal to establish a "new democratic constitution" for the "second republic".
In March 2025, it was reported that Islam could run for either Dhaka-9 or Dhaka-11 in the next Bangladeshi general election.