Former information adviser Mahfuz Alam has confirmed that he will not participate in the upcoming national parliamentary election. Speaking to BBC Bangla on Monday, he said that although nomination papers had been collected on his behalf for the Lakshmipur-1 constituency, he had decided from the beginning not to run. Alam explained that his resignation from the government was not linked to any electoral ambition but rather to concerns raised about neutrality if student representatives remained in government during the election period. He further clarified that his brother, Mahbub Alam, joint convener of the National Citizen Party (NCP), had already collected nomination papers for the same constituency and would contest based on his own decision. Mahfuz Alam stated that he had nothing to comment on his brother’s choice. Earlier, in a Facebook post, he announced that although he was involved in forming the Citizen Committee and the NCP, he would not be part of the NCP. Explaining his stance, Alam said Bangladesh is currently in a “cold war” phase of history, and it is best to remain steadfast in one’s principles without taking sides.