M. Shamsul Alam | |
|---|---|
| Personal Secretary to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh | |
| In office 2001–2006 | |
| Prime Minister | Khaleda Zia |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Occupation | Government officer |
| Known for | Serving as APS to Prime Minister Khaleda Zia;involvement in Secretariat incident (2006);allegations over property purchase in Gulshan |
Md Shamsul Alam is a former personal secretary to Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. [1] Alam is credited with coining the term July 36 the day Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina led Awami League government collapsed. [2]
Alam was born to Yusuf Ali and Azufa Khatun in Gosairhat,Shariatpur District. [3]
In August 2006,Alauddin Ahmed Chowdhury,then recently serving as assistant personal secretary to the Leader of the Opposition Sheikh Hasina,was involved in a confrontation at the Bangladesh Secretariat. [4] Chowdhury and other officers who had been made officers on special duty during the Bangladesh Nationalist Party government alleged that they were subjected to misbehaviour by fourth-class employees. [4] The incident reportedly occurred when a separate group of officials,identified as having benefited during the Bangladesh Nationalist Party administration and led by Shamsul Alam,visited the Ministry of Establishment. [4] Chowdhury and his colleagues subsequently met with the establishment secretary to complain and stated their intention to appeal to the caretaker government for promotions and postings. [4] Police presence at the Secretariat was increased following the incident,which temporarily disrupted regular work. [4]
According to Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s ex-private secretary AHM Nurul Islam,Alam,as assistant personal secretary to the prime minister,played a role in the politicisation of Bangladesh’s civil administration during the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government from 2001 to 2006. [5] Islam alleged that Alam,along with a group of senior and mid-level officials,helped create lists categorizing civil servants by perceived political affiliation. [5] The list was then used to influence promotions,postings,and transfers. [5] Officials identified as sympathetic to the opposition Awami League were often denied promotions,transferred to undesirable posts,or made officers on special duty. [5] At the same time,those with ties to figures such as Haris Chowdhury or Alam were favoured for desirable positions. [5] In 2005,The Daily Star reported that Alam was asked by the Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Kamal Siddiqui to explain how he bought land and a house in Gulshan worth several million Bangladeshi Taka. [6] The report said no action was taken on this request,and that Alam ignored it with the Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s knowledge. [6] These claims were part of wider criticism about corruption in the Prime Minister’s Office during the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s second term in power. [6]
The Anti-Corruption Commission asked Alam and 10 others associated with former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to submit their wealth statements. [7] In February 2008,Alam On 10 November 2008,Alam was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment in a corruption case. [8] According to the case he had 17.9 million BDT in illicit wealth. [9] His wife,Khadiza Anam,was sentenced to three years' imprisonment in the same case. [8] The court also ordered his assets to be confiscated. [9]
In September 2021,a member of the Awami League information and research subcommittee,Shawkat Ali Patwari Tuhin,served a legal notice against Alam over comments against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. [1] At that time Alam was living in the United States. [1] Alam had posted on Facebook money was smuggled outside the country using diplomatic pouches during Sheikh Hasina's official trip to Europe. [1]
During protests in 2024 that toppled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League government,Alam is credited with coining the term July 36. [2] Alam noted that intelligence agencies and Embassy of the United States,Dhaka sources predicted that Hasina's government would fall by July 2024. [2] When Hasina did not resign by the end of July,protesters extended the symbolic “July”period to “July 36,”meaning July would continue until Hasina stepped down. [2]
Alam is married to Khadiza Anam. [8]