Can journalist leader Shawkat Mahmud return to politics?

Former BNP vice-chairman, former president of the National Press Club, and editor of the Economic Times, Shawkat Mahmud, was also well-known as an influential journalist leader of the BNP. This former Prominent journalist leader is currently in prison.

In the 5th National Council of BNP, he was nominated as an advisor to BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia, and in the 6th Council, Shawkat Mahmud was nominated as BNP Vice Chairman.

Earlier, he served as the convener of Brahmanpara Upazila BNP in his home district Comilla from 2012 to 2016.

Shawkat Mahmud completed his education from the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism from Dhaka University in 1980. He joined journalism soon after.

This journalist leader was active in the anti-Awami League movement until 2018. After not receiving the party's nomination in 2018, he developed a distance with the BNP after 2019.

After that, he was accused of colluding with the Awami League government in the BNP Bhangagarh activities. Due to this, he was expelled from the BNP in 2023 after two show cause notices.

Earlier, on the morning of September 13, 2025, police arrested Enayet Karim (55), an American citizen of Bangladeshi origin. According to them, he was moving suspiciously in a Prado car in the Minto Road area of ​​the capital that day. When the police stopped the car and questioned him, he could not give any good answers about his whereabouts in the area.

Enayet Karim was then arrested as a suspect and booked under Section 54. Later, the police filed a case against him at Ramna Police Station under the Anti-Terrorism Act. Shawkat Mahmud was arrested based on the information in that case.
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Journalist Shawkat Mahmud was actively involved in BNP politics for a long time. He also served as the party's vice chairman. He was expelled from all levels of BNP on March 21, 2023.

A political party called Janata Party Bangladesh was launched last April. The party's chairman is film actor Ilias Kanchan and its secretary general is Shawkat Mahmud.

He has been in prison since his arrest on September 13, 2025. However, he was finally seen in court on March 30. In response to questions from reporters, he said, "I can't talk too much. If you talk too much, my bail will be denied."

Currently, there is not much discussion about the arrest of journalist Shawkat Mahmud in the political and media arena. His fate has naturally given rise to a multi-dimensional discussion - where politics, law, media freedom and personal responsibility are all intertwined. In this situation, political analysts believe that after being active in BNP politics for a long time, he has been dropped from the political field for various reasons, including forming a new party during a change of heart.They also think that the chances of him returning to the political arena after his prison term are slim.

Those concerned believe that as a journalist and organizer, Shawkat Mahmud's responsibility was to maintain honesty and responsibility in presenting information and to lead with transparency. At the same time, as a political figure, it was important to be aware of the social and legal implications of his statements and actions. When these two identities come together, the responsibility also doubles. But he may have forgotten that responsibility for unknown reasons. Which resulted in this outcome.

According to them, a big lesson from the fate of Shawkat Mahmud is that this fate is not just a reflection of a greedy individual, but a larger reality. Shawkat Mahmud's incident also reminds us that transparency, impartiality and respect for human rights are essential to ensuring justice. Only by accepting this lesson can we build a more just, democratic and balanced society.