‘Did we vote you for Jamaat?’ Anger erupts at Dhaka University over 2024 uprising poster boy’s political links

Dhaka campus protests over Islamist links (source: News18)

Dhaka University has seen heated protests this week as students clashed with Islami Chhatra Shibir and its parent organisation, Jamaat-e-Islami, accusing them of quietly pushing political influence within campus life. At the centre of the unrest is Sadiq Qayem, once celebrated as a leading figure of the 2024 mass uprising and a prominent student coordinator, who now faces accusations of misleading students to further an Islamist political agenda.

Qayem gained prominence during the 2024 protests and was widely viewed as an independent, reform-minded leader speaking for students across the campus. Tensions flared, however, after he was publicly identified as the president of the Dhaka University unit of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami. The disclosure sparked anger among students, many of whom say they were deceived into voting for him under false assumptions.

During a tense confrontation on campus, students openly challenged Qayem, asking whether they had elected him as vice president only for him to quietly advance Jamaat’s political ambitions. Female students led much of the criticism, accusing Jamaat leaders of repeatedly insulting, disrespecting and verbally abusing women at the university. Several said they felt betrayed, arguing that Qayem had been chosen to represent all students fairly, not to act on behalf of a party with a controversial ideological background and history of violence.

Protesters claim Qayem used the momentum of the 2024 uprising to conceal his political affiliations, revealing his links to Chhatra Shibir only after securing a powerful post. They allege he then leveraged his position to indirectly strengthen Jamaat’s wider political outreach, particularly at a time when Islamist-aligned groups are making gains in student elections.

“We elected you as our representative and VP but are you now secretly working for Jamaat agenda. Did we vote for you so you could support Jamaat’s campaign? Jamaat leaders have repeatedly insulted, disrespected and abused the women and female students of this university," a girl student said.

Campus politics in Bangladesh remain highly sensitive, given Chhatra Shibir’s long association with violence, underground activity and its alleged role during the 1971 Liberation War. Another girl student said Jamaat was spreading false information and fake facts about the Liberation War and “we don’t support this".

Intelligence sources say memories of past violence and ideological pressure continue to fuel student resistance to any perceived resurgence of Shibir’s influence on university campuses.