Among institutions that have consistently ranked at the top in higher secondary and equivalent examinations over recent years, Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrasah stands out. It again recorded a 99 percent pass rate in this year’s Alim exams, with 52 percent of candidates earning a GPA of 5. The strong academic record extends beyond the Alim exams. For several years, a notable number of graduates have also succeeded in admission tests for leading universities such as the University of Dhaka and Jahangirnagar University. The madrasah has also gained attention for the political prominence of several alumni.

Mahfuj Alam, a key figure in the 2024 student-led uprising, completed his Alim at Tamirul Millat. A 2015–16 batch law student at Dhaka University, he was made a special assistant to the chief adviser after the interim government was formed after movement. Alam later became the adviser for the telecommunications and information ministry. He resigned on December 10 last year to contest the national election but later withdrew.

Hannan Masud, another organiser of the Students Against Discrimination movement that led the quota reform protests in 2024 and the subsequent uprising, is also a Tamirul Millat alumnus. He won the Noakhali-6 (Hatiya) constituency in the thirteenth parliamentary election as the candidate of an 11-party alliance.

Speaking to Bonik Barta, Masud credited the madrasah’s political emergence to its academic standing. “Tamirul Millat is one of the country’s top madrasahs. That’s why talented students from across Bangladesh enrol here,” he said. “Just as Dhaka University produces strong national leadership, this madrasah is now beginning to produce its own leaders. Most of its students are politically aware. The key difference from other madrasahs is that it attracts the best students from all regions, creating an environment where sound leadership can develop.”

The newly elected young member of Parliament said he expects the institution to produce more capable, responsible and patriotic leaders for the country.

Other alumni include Abidul Islam, who ran as the BNP-backed candidate for vice-president in the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election, and Salahuddin Ammar, general secretary of the Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union (RUCSU). Anisur Rahman Khandaker, the Chatra Dal panel’s nominee for DUCSU general secretary in the 2019 election, also studied at the same madrasah.

Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrasah is run by the Tamirul Millat Trust. The madrasah was founded in 1963 in Mirhajirbagh, Jatrabari. It was established on land donated by members of the local Kazi family, according to residents and those associated with the institution. The Trust was initially funded in part from the Kazi family’s property.

The institution first began as an orphanage and a Furqania Madrasah (maktab). Its founders included Abul Mokarram Mohammad Moslem, Mesbahuddin Iqbali, and Prof Muhammad Yusuf Ali who was a former secretary general of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Iqbali had been a private tutor in the Kazi household. Prof Yusuf Ali served as member secretary of the Tamirul Millat Trust. The madrasah’s establishment also drew on advice from Prof Ghulam Azam and Shamsul Haque Faridpuri.

According to the Tamirul Millat Student Union, the madrasah was formally inaugurated on December 1, 1963. Prof Ghulam Azam, then Jamaat-e-Islami ameer, and Hazrat Maulana Shamsul Haque Faridpuri attended the ceremony. A committee was formed to develop a scientific syllabus. The late Nur Mohammad Azmi served as convener, with the late Maulana Abdur Razzaq as member secretary.

The madrasah later gained Dakhil status in 1977, Alim in 1979, Fazil in 1982, and Kamil in 1990. It introduced both general and science streams. As its popularity grew, a branch was opened in Tongi. Classes began there in 1997 in a rented building belonging to the Jamia Islamia Trust.

In 2000, the madrasah established a campus for female students in a house at Sayedabad’s Golapbag before moving to its own campus in Matuail and offering classes up to Kamil. A separate girls’ branch was added next to the Tongi campus in 2011. In 2025, the institution acquired land for BDT 110 million to expand educational activities at the Tongi girls’ branch.

All Tamirul Millat branches operated under a single principal until 2016. After affiliation with the Arabic University, each branch received separate regulatory approval. The madrasah has consistently ranked top in Alim examinations for several years, with 600 to 800 students earning a GPA–5 annually.

Teachers and alumni attribute the strong political presence of its students to the institution’s active student union election process. Even while student unions were practically defunct for a period at most educational institutions, Tamirul Millat maintained an active union, giving students hands-on training in leadership and administration from adolescence. This, they say, fosters the confidence to assume leadership roles at the national level.

Alongside the student union, several co-curricular organisations promote intellectual and creative pursuits. These include the Tamirul Millat Debating Society and the Millat Cultural Council — supporting debating, recitation, music and drama.

SM Hafizur Rahman, a professor at the University of Dhaka’s Institute of Education and Research, told Bonik Barta: “We have seen for several years that students from this madrasah perform well. A significant number gain admission to Dhaka University each year. Many are also doing well in politics. The institution must have a teaching framework that not only helps students achieve good results but also fosters leadership. We have always observed that student unions and co-curricular activities generally help develop leadership skills and shape students into capable citizens. That could be a factor in this case. But to identify precisely why students from certain institutions are comparatively ahead, research on those institutions is necessary.”

The current president of the Tamirul Millat Madrasah Alumni Association is Advocate Atiqur Rahman, the central general secretary of the Bangladesh Labour Welfare Federation and a member of the central executive council of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. He told Bonik Barta: “A major strength of Tamirul Millat is that alongside religious education, students engage with contemporary knowledge, politics and social thought. This combination of religious values and modern political thinking has helped them play an effective role in national politics.”

Several former students of Tamirul Millat contested the recent thirteenth parliamentary election. Among them is Barrister Nazibur Rahman Momen. He attended the madrasah from class eight and is the son of the late Maulana Motiur Rahman Nizami, former Jamaat-e-Islami ameer and a minister. Barrister Momen won the Pabna-1 seat by 24,804 votes.

Hafez Rashedul Islam Khan, who won in Sherpur-1, is also an alumnus. “Tamirul Millat is one of the country’s leading and most prestigious religious institutions,” he told Bonik Barta. “Students here engage with various co-curricular activities alongside their studies, which makes them politically and socially aware. It’s such aware citizens who can play an effective and responsible role in nation building.”

Another alumnus is Mahbub Alam, the 11-party alliance candidate in Lakshmipur-1 (Ramganj) and brother of Mahfuj Alam, the former interim government’s information adviser.

Dr Hifjur Rahman, principal of the Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrasah Tongi branch, said the institution aims to produce politically conscious citizens. “This madrasah has moved beyond the conventional approach,” he told Bonik Barta. “Alongside providing quality education, it works to shape students into politically conscious citizens. It’s essential to develop students’ intellectual preparedness, thoughtfulness, open-mindedness and critical thinking to create good citizens at a national level. For that, a sound and positive environment is necessary. We have created that environment at our institution through collaboration between students and teachers. We have various club-based activities, including a science club and a debating club. These contribute to students’ multi-dimensional development. Our teachers, through their diverse talents and skills, aren’t just preparing students for good results but are working to shape them into aware, responsible and thoughtful citizens.”

The institution is not affiliated with any political party, the principal said. “Our institution is free from local political influence. In many places, institutions are drawn into the agendas of local power brokers. Here, we focus on developing an aware student body by emphasising free thought and intellectual growth. So students form their own political awareness and can express their views independently.”

Prof Dr Korban Ali currently serves as chairman of the Tamirul Millat Trust. Principal Muhammad Zainul Abedin is secretary, with Mahmud Hossain as joint secretary and Maulana Sabbir Ahmad as mutawalli. Trust members include Col (retd) Dr Zehad Khan, Dr Kazi Md Yousuf Ali, Mohammad Shafiq Ullah, Md Tofazzal Hossain and Dr Muhammad Khalilur Rahman Madani.

Dr Muhammad Khalilur Rahman Madani, the main branch’s principal, told Bonik Barta: “Although this is a religious institution, teachers work tirelessly alongside Islamic education to shape students into good citizens. They aren’t merely fulfilling duties but are deeply committed to the holistic development of their students.”