Abu Baker Mojumder- Photo: Collected

By Md. Rasel Sarker

DHAKA, July 31, 2025 (BSS) - Abu Baker Mojumder, a Geology student at Dhaka University, was one of the key coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement during the 2024 July Uprising. While leading the movement, he endured various forms of torture.

Abu Baker Mojumder hails from Barura upazila in Cumilla. His father, Mozammel Hossain Mojumder, is a businessman. His mother's name is Razia Sultana. After completing his SSC from a local school, he did his HSC from BCIC College in Dhaka. 

In the 2019-20 academic year, he enrolled in the Department of Geology at the Dhaka University. He is currently pursuing his Master’s degree and is a resident of Fazlul Haq Muslim Hall at the university. During the tenure of the Awami League government, Chhatra League drove him out of the hall. He returned to his hall only after the uprising.

Baker said he grew up in a politically conscious family with roots in the 1971 Liberation War. His father is involved in BNP politics. This deeply influenced his political interest from an early age. After getting admission into Dhaka University, he became actively involved in student politics. He served as the member secretary of Dhaka University unit of Democratic Student Force.

During his tenure with DSF, he was vocal against the injustices and irregularities of the Awami League government and its student wing, Chhatra League. While holding this position, he played a vital role as one of the coordinators of the July Uprising. Currently, he is serving as the convener of the Bangladesh Democratic Students’ Union, a newly formed student organization comprising students from the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.

In a recent interview with the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), Abu Baker Mojumder shared about his participation, leadership role and experiences during the July Uprising. 

BSS: When and how did you get involved in the 2024 quota reform movement?
Abu Baker Mojumder: The 56 percent quota in government jobs was extremely discriminatory. We fought against that injustice through the mass uprising, which led to the fall of the fascist Awami League government. We knew we wouldn’t get government jobs ourselves. We joined the movement just to stand beside the students. I was directly involved from the beginning of the quota movement until the end of the uprising. When the High Court reinstated the quota system on June 5, 2024, it triggered a strong reaction among students. We, the DSF activists, called a protest in front of the Dhaka University Central Library. To our surprise, general students started joining us. We held protests and marches for three consecutive days. As the Eid holidays were approaching, we gave the government an ultimatum until June 30 to take steps toward reasonable reform of the quota system.

BSS: The “Anti-Discrimination Student Movement” led the quota reform protests and the July uprising. How did this platform come into being?
Abu Baker Mojumder: We knew the Awami League government would not accept our demands. So, we didn’t just sit around after giving the ultimatum. On June 7, we sat down and developed a master plan on how to connect students from across the country to the movement. We sketched out a roadmap for the protests. As part of the plan, I was tasked with reaching out to students outside Dhaka. Between June 9 and 30, we contacted students from various universities across the country. That’s when I met our first martyr of the uprising, Abu Sayeed. I got to know many organizers during that time. To avoid partisan divisions, we chose the name “Anti-Discrimination Student Movement” as a common platform so everyone could own the movement and become part of it. Initially, we got very little response under party banners, but under this banner, there was massive student participation.

BSS: What strategies did you use in the movement? How did you manage to mobilize so many general students?
Abu Baker Mojumder: First of all, many of us leading the movement were anti-government and anti-Chhatra League. Our goal was to steer the quota reform protests into an anti-government movement. We expected the movement will be turned into a boarder shape with participation of all.       
Another strategy was to generalize the movement as much as possible. To do that, we made space for people outside DSF and even stepped back from leadership positions when needed. We knew that if those in leadership refused to compromise, the movement wouldn’t succeed.
One key tactic was giving female students front-line roles. Initially, only 4 or 5 girls joined. But once we gave them banners to hold and made space for them, their participation surged. Everyone came with flags tied to their heads -- it created a heroic image. We created a comfort zone for female students, and day by day, their presence grew to 50 percent. And it's a fact: when 50 percent of a movement is made up of women, you automatically attract an equal or larger number of men. That’s what happened here -- this was a deliberate strategy.
We also avoided creating internal conflicts over leadership by not assigning rigid hierarchies or titles. Those who were active were recognized equally as coordinators. Another tactic was sharing heroic videos early on in July in SSC and HSC Facebook groups, which helped mobilize school and college students. You saw how many younger students took part in this movement.

BSS: How did you coordinate with other student organizations during the July Uprising? How were student leaders brought into the movement?
Abu Baker Mojumder: We didn’t have much coordination with student organizations in June. It really began around July 2 or 3. Maybe one meeting happened around June 27 or 28, but not before that. We divided responsibilities among ourselves to reach out to different organizations. I was tasked with contacting leaders of Chhatra Dal. I sat with them several times. At that time, it was very challenging to gain everyone’s trust -- each group had its own perspective.
To keep the movement focused, we didn’t put overly familiar faces in front. I clearly remember that five of us, including Akhter bhai and Mahfuz bhai from DSF, sat down and decided that this movement would be known as a general students’ movement. When it would turn into a political or violent movement, we’d then involve everyone else.

BSS: The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement often used unique and creative names for its programs during the protests. Where did those ideas come from?
Abu Baker Mojumder: In 2020, when we started planning for the formation of DSF, we began conducting extensive research. That study proved to be extremely useful. We applied many different strategies in this movement including creative naming tactics. Another important factor was crafting our statements in a way that resonated with the pulse of our generation.
One of our key learning was the importance of inclusive representation -- leaders from all kinds of communities should be in front. For example, each of our movement leaders represented a different type of community. We always believed in a centrist ideology and made sure there was space for all blocks -- right, left, and centrist. Some of us maintained the right-leaning bloc, some the left, and some stayed neutral centrists. We tried to uphold that balance throughout the movement.

BSS: On July 15, when Chhatra League attacked quota reform protesters at Dhaka University, the movement turned violent. The university campus and dorms were shut down. How did you keep the movement alive during that time?
Abu Baker Mojumder: On July 14, when Sheikh Hasina called students the “grandchildren of razakars,” students for the first time publicly chanted slogans against her. Female students broke through hall gates at night and took to the streets shouting slogans. That was a turning point.
Following this, on July 15, Chhatra League’s attack on protesting students at DU became a major turning point. Then came the killing of Abu Sayeed in Rangpur on July 16, which dramatically shifted the movement’s course.
After the attacks on July 15 and the closure of campus and dormitories, we began preparing for a counteraction. Even after the attacks, around 9pm that night, we entered the campus via Curzon Hall and announced our next program. That move was meant to show students that we hadn’t fled and had the mental strength to fight Chhatra League.
Students from Shahidullah Hall and the three science halls gave us enormous courage and support. We maintained communication with students, and once private university students also took to the streets, the movement gained even more momentum.

BSS: After the nationwide internet shutdown on July 18, how did you coordinate the movement? Where were you during that time?
Abu Baker Mojumder: The day after the internet was shut down, Nahid bhai, Asif bhai, and I were taken to an undisclosed location. After being tortured, they released Nahid bhai on July 21, and Asif bhai and I were released on July 24. We were receiving treatment at Gonoshasthya Hospital.
While still undergoing treatment, on July 26, we were taken again -- this time by the Detective Branch (DB). On July 27, they seized our phones. We were released from the DB office on August 1. So, during the internet blackout, we were imprisoned by DB. I have very little knowledge about what was going on outside during that time.

BSS: What happened at the DB office after you were taken there?
Abu Baker Mojumder: At first, they tried to intimidate us into withdrawing from the movement. They treated us badly. I was hung and beaten -- physically tortured. The reason? I got into a verbal altercation with DB chief Harun.
At the time, Nahid bhai, Asif bhai, and I were kept on the fifth floor. Sarjis bhai, Hasnat bhai, and Nusrat apu were held downstairs. I was beaten on July 27 and 28. They tortured us both mentally and physically. They asked us to give a statement thanking Sheikh Hasina. They even proposed arranging a meeting between us and fascist Hasina.
In protest, we began a hunger strike unto death.

BSS: We saw a video of six coordinators announcing their withdrawal from the movement, broadcast from DB custody. Can you tell us what happened behind the scenes?
Abu Baker Mojumder: They pressured us in many ways to make a statement, but we refused. We couldn’t understand the situation outside, nor what role we should play inside. We were trying to find a way to get out. So we were forced to read their prepared statement.
The deal was: we’d say those words after being released, and they kept that video as evidence. Later, they leaked it to the media. But after our release, we declared that the movement would continue.

BSS: During those dreadful days of the July Uprising, what kind of support did you receive from your family? Were they threatened?
Abu Baker Mojumder: My family received minor threats, but no harm was done at the local level. My family is political—my father was involved in BNP politics, while my maternal relatives were with the Awami League. During the movement, my family stood by me. Especially when I was taken to DB, my elder brother came looking for me. My political path was always in alignment with my family.

BSS: Of all the painful memories of the July Uprising, which one stands out as the most harrowing -- one that you will carry for life?
Abu Baker Mojumder: There are many memories from the July Uprising. But the most pathetic and heartbreaking for me happened on the morning of August 5, at the Chankharpul intersection, when two people were martyred right in front of me. I was with Asif bhai at the time.
The day before, on August 4, I saw two sisters carrying their brother’s dead body. It shattered me emotionally. On August 5, Asif bhai and I came from Maniknagar to Chankharpul with great difficulty. That day, there was a “March to Dhaka” program. We tried to gather at Shahbagh and Shaheed Minar.
At Chankharpul, police opened fire. We had a mess (hostel) on the upper floor of Swapno Shopping Mall in that area -- we were familiar with it. We tried to organize people and lead a march toward Shaheed Minar, but police started shooting. Two were martyred in front of us. Two more had died before we even got there.
Police even shot at us from the Burn Institute rooftop, targeting me and Asif bhai. Asif bhai kept saying, “Baker, we came into this ready to be martyrs. So many people are dying -- if I die, so be it.” He kept trying to run into the line of fire, and I had to hold him back. I witnessed this moment. That memory will stay with me forever.

BSS: What kind of future do you envision for Bangladesh after the uprising? 
Abu Baker Mojumder: We want to build a new Bangladesh in line with the spirit of July Uprising. The people joined the movement for stamping out fascism from the country. 
We want a corruption-free and terror-free society, one without extortion or injustice.