Two student representatives in the interim government’s Advisory Council were advised by the top level of the administration to step down by mid-September, but both sought more time to decide, according to government sources.

The two advisers are Information and Broadcasting Adviser Mahfuz Alam and Local Government Adviser Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan.

Sources said Mahfuz Alam has so far shown no interest in contesting the upcoming national elections and wants to continue serving in the government, while Asif Mahmud may resign before the election schedule is announced, though no final decision has been made yet.

Attempts to reach the two advisers for comments were unsuccessful. However, on August 14, Asif Mahmud told reporters he intended to resign before the announcement of the election schedule. Later, on September 28, Mahfuz Alam said at an event, “For two months, I’ve been in uncertainty about when to step down. Honestly, I don’t know when that will be.”

Following the fall of the Awami League government after the July 2024 mass uprising, the interim administration led by Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus was formed on August 8. The council currently includes 23 members, including two student representatives.

According to sources, efforts are underway to retain at least one of the two student representatives in the council amid concerns that if both resign, some members within the council might move against them.

Initially, student leader Md Nahid Islam was appointed as a representative in the council but resigned on February 25 to become the convener of the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), formed by the young leaders of the July uprising.

Mahfuz Alam was appointed as a special assistant to the Chief Adviser on August 28 last year and later took oath as an adviser on November 10. He was later assigned to the Information Ministry after Nahid Islam’s resignation.

Asif Mahmud, on the other hand, was first given responsibility for the Labour and Youth & Sports ministries before being reassigned to the Local Government Ministry in November following the removal of the late A.F. Hasan Arif. He currently oversees both Local Government and Sports portfolios.

Both Mahfuz Alam and Asif Mahmud are known to be close to the NCP and serve as its informal advisers. On October 14, the National Consensus Commission held an informal meeting with NCP leaders, attended by one of the student advisers.

However, NCP leaders argue that the advisory council was formed with names proposed by multiple parties, and therefore, singling out the two student advisers for removal is unacceptable. They reportedly raised this issue during a meeting with Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday.

The 13th National Parliament election is expected to be held in the first half of February, with the schedule likely to be announced in early December. Discussions surrounding the Advisory Council’s composition have drawn political attention, with the BNP already calling for the removal of advisers deemed close to specific parties.

Commenting on the situation, writer and researcher Mohiuddin Ahmed said the ongoing debate over the council members could damage the image of the interim government. “It is creating doubts among the public about the government’s neutrality,” he said.

The Chief Adviser must take a bold decision — either the two student advisers should resign or publicly declare that they will not contest the polls and have no affiliation with the NCP,” he added.