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Sultana Kamal
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Sultana
Kamal is born in the year of 1950.she is a lawyer
and an activist who has challenged the use of Islamic
fundamentalist decrees known as fatwas, issued by
village religious leaders in Bangladesh against women
accused of ‘misbehaviour’. The rising
face of fundamentalism in Bangladesh has threatened
her, the Sahaba Soldiers have fire bombed her house
and terrorised her in many different ways. |
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Sultana is not affected – she is the true soldier. Her
preoccupation with Human Rights began in 1971, helping war
widows, rape victims and orphans – and today she represents
the voice of women’s rights. Also a winner of the John
Humphrey Freedom Award in 1996.
Begum
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
Begum
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain was born in 1880 in the village
of Pairaband in the colonial British province of Bengal
Presidency, which later became the northern part of
Bangladesh. Born into an upper-class landowning Muslim
family, Rokeya was not allowed to attend school, or
even to learn Bengali or English, to prevent "contamination"
from non-Muslim ideas.She
was taught to read Arabic and Urdu, in order to be
able to read the Koran and books on "proper"
conduct for women. |
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Rokeya
was fortunate to have an older brother who believed in education
for women. He taught Rokeya and her sister (who also became
a writer) English and Bangla secretly at night. She remained
grateful to this brother all her life.
Eleven years after they had been married, Rokeya's husband
died. She started a school for girls in his memory, called
Shakawat Memorial School for Girls. She also founded the
Bengali Muslim Women's Association and was active in debates
and conferences regarding the status of women and education
until her death on December 9, 1932. Today in Bangladesh,
December 9 is celebrated as Rokeya Day.
Rokeya
Shakawat Hossain, most commonly known as Begum Rokeya, was
an important forward-thinker for her time. As an activist
and a writer, she has been an inspiring figure who has contributed
much to the struggle to liberate women from the bondage of
patriarchy.
Faustina
Pereira
Member
of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh
Ph.D. in International Human Rights Law
University of Notre Dame Law School
Dr. Faustina Pereira is a lawyer from Bangladesh and
a member of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.Dr. Pereira
received her LL.M. law degree from the University
of Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1993. She earned an L.L.M.
in International Human Rights Law at the University
of Notre Dame Law School, Indiana, in 1996. |
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Her areas of expertise are concentrated mainly in the South
Asian milieu, but she has interest in and comprehension of
gender issues on a global plane, especially in a Human Rights
context. Her dissertation contributes to the ongoing debate
within the feminist movement touching upon sensitive issues
such as the public/private dichotomy, the religious/secular
struggle in relation to the State and the family.
A
Legal Aid and Mediation Center of Bangladesh, Ain O Salish
Kendra, has already formed a core group of women lawyers and
scholars, with the aim of developing leadership roles to lobby
for the implementation of the proposals for reform presented
in Dr. Pereiras dissertation. She has been described as a
member of a small minority of women in law in Bangladesh,
but even smaller minority as perhaps the only Christian lawyer
in that country.
Muhammad Yunus
In
1974, Professor Muhammad Yunus, a Bangladeshi economist
from Chittagong University, led his students on a
field trip to a poor village. They interviewed a woman
who made bamboo stools, and learnt that she had to
borrow the equivalent of 15p to buy raw bamboo for
each stool made. After repaying the middleman, sometimes
at rates as high as 10% a week, she was left with
a penny profit margin.
Had she been able to borrow at more advantageous rates,
she would have been able to amass an economic cushion
and raise herself above subsistence level.
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Realizing
that there must be something terribly wrong with the economics
he was teaching, Yunus took matters into his own hands,
and from his own pocket lent the equivalent of £ 17
to 42 basket-weavers. He found that it was possible with
this tiny amount not only to help them survive, but also
to create the spark of personal initiative and enterprise
necessary to pull themselves out of poverty.
Against
the advice of banks and government, Yunus carried on giving
out 'micro-loans', and in 1983 formed the Grameen Bank, meaning
'village bank' founded on principles of trust and solidarity.
In Bangladesh today, Grameen has 1,084 branches, with 12,500
staff serving 2.1 million borrowers in 37,000 villages. On
any working day Grameen collects an average of $1.5 million
in weekly installments. Of the borrowers, 94% are women and
over 98% of the loans are paid back, a recovery rate higher
than any other banking system. Grameen methods are applied
in projects in 58 countries, including the US, Canada, France,
The Netherlands and Norway.
Muhammad Yunus is that rare thing: a bona fide visionary.
His dream is the total eradication of poverty from the world.
'Grameen', he claims, 'is a message of hope, a programme for
putting homelessness and destitution in a museum so that one
day our children will visit it and ask how we could have allowed
such a terrible thing to go on for so long'. This work is
a fundamental rethink on the economic relationship between
the rich and the poor, their rights and their obligations.
The World Bank recently acknowledged that 'this business approach
to the alleviation of poverty has allowed millions of individuals
to work their way out of poverty with dignity'.
Credit is the last hope left to those faced with absolute
poverty. That is why Muhammad Yunus believes that the right
to credit should be recognized as a fundamental human right.
It is this struggle and the unique and extraordinary methods
he invented to combat human despair that Muhammad Yunus recounts
here with humility and conviction. It is also the view of
a man familiar with both Eastern and Western cultures —
on the failures and potential for good of industrial countries.
It is an appeal for action: we must concentrate on promoting
the will to survive and the courage to build in the first
and most essential element of the economic cycle — Man.
Muhammad
Yunus was born in 1940 in Chittagong, the business centre
of what was then Eastern Bengal. He was the third of 14 children
of whom five died in infancy. Educated in Chittagong, he was
awarded a Fulbright scholarship and received his Ph.D. from
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. In 1972 he became
head of the Economics Department at Chittagong University.
He is the founder and managing director of the Grameen Bank.
In 1997, Professor Yunus led the world’s first Micro
Credit Summit in Washington, DC.
Aroj Ali Matubbar
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Aroj
Ali Matubbar was a truly homegrown philosopher without
any formal academic training -he had not, in fact,
attended any institution of higher learning. Yet,
after his death in 1985, Aroj Ali Matubbar came to
be regarded as one of the most brilliant rationalists
the country has over produced, and as an iconoclast
who was not afraid to speak out against entrenched
beliefs and superstitions which easily lead to religious
fanaticism.A practicing Muslim himself and a pious
man throughout his life, Matubbar took it as a mission
to strike at the roots of all superstitions and fanatic
half-beliefs, and thereby restore the balance between
science and religion. |
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It was a difficult task no doubt, especially in
a country with low literacy where there is practically no
tradition of informed debates on dogmas, creeds, beliefs
and religion. Matubbar's books are probably the first such
attempts to introduce enlightened discussion and debate
about a number of ideas and issues that have exercised the
minds of religious philosophers and ordinary followers of
Islam over the ages.
Matubbar
was born in the Bengali year 1307 (corresponding to 1900
A.D.) in a poor farming family in the village Lamchori in
Charbaria union, about 11 k.m. from Barisal town. His father
did not have any land, and after his death, Matubbar had
to look after his mother and his younger sister. He had
practically no schooling, because he had to work to fend
for the family's upkeep. He embarked on a program of self-
teaching, borrowing books from the libraries and from individuals
interested in education. Through hard work, Matubbar was
able to improve the family's material condition; he acquired
some land, began farming himself, and, with the spare money,
bought books. By the time the 1961 cyclone hit his house
and blew it away into the river Kirtankhola, his personal
library had several thousand books. All the books were lost.
Aroj
Ali Matubbar befriended a number of scholars and academics
of Barisal town --noted among whom were Professor Kazi Golam
Kadir and Professor Muhammad Shamsul Haque, and through
then, a number of others. Their encouragement and patronage
helped him publish his books-- which were always in danger
of being banned by an over- sensitive government. Matubbar
was arrested and taken into police custody for his The Quest
for Truth. Throughout his life, he was subjected to harassment
and threat for his writings-much of which rattled religious
institutions and religious fanatics. But to a large number
of his readers, his writings were -to use a cliche -a breath
of fresh air in the stifling atmosphere of bigotry, zealotry
and religious intolerance.
Matubbar's
other main work besides The Quest for Truth, is The Mystery
of Creation. Professor Muhammad Shamsul Haque suggests that
these two books are like a pair of eyes. Matubbar, incidentally,
had donated his eyes for transplantation after his death.
He had also written a series of other essays dealing with
religion, philosophy and ethics. He also left behind some
manuscripts of some unfinished work, including one on his
philosophy of life. Aroj Ali Matubbar died on the 1st Chaitra
of the Bengali year 1392 (1985 A.D.).
Late Dr. Ahmed Sharif
[Feb
13, 1921 to Feb 24, 1999]
A consummate rational humanist, prominent freethinker
and an outspoken scholar Dr. Sharif has left behind
a legacy for all "Mukto-monas" who still
fighting fascist ideas, autocratic views, communalism
and superstitions in our country and abroad. Uncompromising
till death, Dr. Sharif rose above all religious and
parochial outlooks towards life. For his brave utterances
against communalism and superstitions, autocracy and
fascism, his life came under threat many times. |
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But He did not care. Dr. Sharif influenced many youths during
his life-time, and his residence in Dhaka University area
was always a favorite place for the youths for weekly discussions
on issues ranging from the ideal way of child rearing to modern
theories of literature and philosophy through a rational outlook.
Dr. Sharif donated his corneas to two blind men - Hafez Khairul
Alam Khokan from Madaripur and Sakir Hossain of Dhaka. His
body was handed over to the Bangladesh Medical College authorities
for dissection and study by the students. This was done in
accordance with his last wishes.
Salma Sobhan(1937
- 2003)
Salma
Sobhan was a lawyer, social worker and human-rights
activist. Salma Rasheeda Akhtar Banu, known as Salma
Sobhan, was born on August 11, 1937. Her father Md.
Ikramullah was the first foreign secretary of Pakistan
and mother Begum Shaista Ikramullah, one of the first
women lawmakers in Pakistan, served as Pakistan ambassador
to Morocco.Salma was educated at Westonbirt School
in England and studied law at Girton College, Cambridge,
in 1958. |
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She
was called to the Bar from Lincoln's Inn in 1959 and became
one of Pakistan's first women barristers.
She
started her career as a legal assistant with M/S Surridge
& Beecheno from 1959 to 1961 in Karachi. She came to
Dhaka after her marriage with Prof Sobhan in 1962.
Salma
taught law at Dhaka University from 1962 to 1981. She lost
her eldest son Taimur in an accident in 1981.
She
worked with Bangladesh Institute of Law and International
Affairs (BILIA) from 1981 to 1988, and served as editor
of the Supreme Court Law Reports (SCLR) for several years.
In
2001, Salma was honoured by the Lawyers Committee for Human
Rights in New York for her contribution to protecting human
rights.
Her
major publications are Legal Status of Women in Bangladesh,
1975, Peasants Perception of Law, 1981 and No Better Option-Women
Industrial Workers (co-authored), 1988.
Dr Humayun Azad
Dr. Humayun Azad is a prolific Bangladeshi writer, scholar
and professor at the University of Dhaka. He is well known
for his fearless practice of free thinking and open criticism
of Islam and Muslims.
Angela Gomes
Angela
Gomes of Bangladesh, one of the five winners of the
1999 Ramon Magsaysay Award, Asia's most prestigious
prize award. She was honored for Community Leadership.
Some 20 years on, Gomes, 47, runs one of the largest
women's rural organizations in Bangladesh.
Operating out of a 1.5-hectare training complex in
Jessore, Banchte Shekha (meaning Learn To Survive
in Bengali) offers female-empowerment programs to
more than 25,000 women in nearly 430 villages, benefiting
through them an estimated 200,000 family members. |
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Banchte
Shekha - founded by Gomes in 1976 - teaches rural women a
vast range of income-generating skills, including handicrafts,
raising crops, poultry and livestock, fish farming, beekeeping
and silk making (from the cocoon to the weaving loom to the
printing). It also provides health-awareness programs, maternity
care and basic schooling through adult education courses.
Fareea Lara
1970
- 1998
In Bangladesh, Fareea Lara is a well known name. She
was born on the 16th of April, 1970. She gained a
masters in English Literature from Dhaka University
in 1993. Lara began her pilot training in 1996 and
in 1998 she received her commercial flying license.
Six months later a freak accident ended Lara's life. |
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On
the 27th of September, 1998, at 10:23 the Cessna-150 Training
Aircraft suddenly caught on fire and crashed Lara and her
colleague. She was 28 years old when she died. After the accident,
not only Fareea Lara's family but the whole nation was filled
with shock and grief. Her mother, writer Selina Hossain and
Lara's family did not allow her dreams to end with her life.
They took the responsibility of establishing the Fareea Lara
Foundation.
Fatema Begum
She
is one of the renowned police officers of Bangladesh,
and happens to be the first woman to join this force.
Her name is synonymous with bravery and courage and
she is none other than Fatema Begum, who is now SS
special branch security and protection (Special Superintendent
Of Police). Her village is in Thakurgaon of Bikrampur
where she grew up and completed her studies. |
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From the very beginning of her life this bold determined
lady wanted to serve her country. In the year 1984 she appeared
for her BCS examination to make her wish come true. Among
the many cadres Fatema selected the police service as her
first and foremost choice.
Fatema had to tackle a lot of pressure alone from the unkind
male chauvinistic society. She still followed her dreams
and was stubborn enough to realize them no matter what.
Even when she was in Sardha police academy for her training,
followed by her BATC training, she had to stand up for her
rights since she was not given the permission from the higher
officials to begin her training course. Finally, after confronting
the principal of the academy, who was very much impressed
by her dedication, she was allowed her to take part in the
training. Mrs.Fatema Begum is truly a woman of substance
who can set examples for other young girls who are interested
in entering this kind of challenging profession.
Dr. Noorunnahar Fyzennessa
Noorunnahar Fyzennessa was an ordinary person with extraordinary
energy and aspiration for good deed. Though she had to work
and live with limited amenities the unlimited will power and
uncommon love of work made her perform the kinds of activities
pertaining to the upliftment of the students' community and
society. She did her work not for money and fame, but for
self satisfaction and commitment to the society and country
at large.
Born in 1931 Fyzennessa attended the famous Sakhawat Memorial
Girls School and Victoria Institution in Calcutta, went
to Lady Brabourne College Calcutta and Chittagong Govt.
College. She graduated from Chittagong Govt. College in
1949. Dr. N Fyzennessa attended the university of Dhaka,
obtained M A Degree in political science and also got married
to Mr. S. Moqsud Ali, a renowned professor of that department.
Afterwards she started her professional career in different
educational institutions.
Dr. Fyzennessa took Bachelor in Education Degree from Dhaka
Teachers' Training college and was appointed a lecturer
there. She was sent abroad on Full Bright scholarship to
USA in 1960. She came back successfully, loaded with training
and techniques of teaching. Fyzennessa then joined Dhaka
University Laboratory school in 1969 as the principal and
served for five years. Most of the upliftment work, both
in curricular and co-curricular activities took place during
her able, imaginative experienced skillful administration
and healthy guidance.
Dr.
Fyzennessa was awarded AID scholarship and studied in the
university of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado for two
years and obtained Doctorate in Education (Ed. D) degree from
there. During her stay in Greeley campus she used to take
part in co-curricular activities and charmed the fellow students
there coming back from USA Dr. N. F Nessa joined the institute
of Education and Research as a lecturer and was ultimately
promoted to the esteemed post of professor. She served the
institution till 1994 with credit, sincerity and dexterity.
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
Begum
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain was born in 1880 in the village
of Pairaband in the colonial British province of Bengal
Presidency, which later became the northern part of
Bangladesh.
In 1896, when Rokeya was sixteen years old, she married
Khan Bahadur Sakhawat Hossain, the Deputy Magistrate
of Bhagalpur. Syed was also in favor of women's education,
and he encouraged Rokeya to write and set aside money
to start a school for Muslim women. |
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Rokeya wrote courageously against restrictions on women and
to promote their emancipation, which she believed would come
by breaking the gender division of labor. When women were
able to undertake whatever profession they chose, she argued,
then segregation and discrimination would cease.
Eleven years after they had been married, Rokeya's husband
died. She started a school for girls in his memory, called
Shakawat Memorial School for Girls. She also founded the Bengali
Muslim Women's Association and was active in debates and conferences
regarding the status of women and education until her death
on December 9, 1932.
Selina Parveen
In 1931, Selina Parveen was born in Kolyan Nagar, Ramganj,
Noakhali, Bangladesh. She was a journalist at 'Lolona' newspaper,
and was the Publisher and Editor of a cultural magazine named
'ShilaLipi'. On 14th of December, she was killed in the war
of 1971.
Sigma Huda
After
finishing her schooling and doing her Senior Cambridge
this dynamic lady became the country's first female
lawyer, at the age of 21. In those days there were
hardly any female lawyers and she was practically
the first one to come into this profession.
Coming from a very well-reputed and well off family
where no one had any obstacles to realizing their
dreams, this lady wanted to become one of the most
famous and renowned persons of this country. |
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She dreamed of handling those cases which no lawyer would
dare to take. She dreamed of wining every case that her clients
would bring to her. She is one lady who knows how to achieve
success in life.
Justice Muhammad Habibur Rahman
Rahman,
(Justice) Muhammad Habibur educationist, lawyer and Justice.
Born in Murshidabad in 1930 Habibur Rahman obtained his
BA Honours (1949) and MA (1951) in History from Dhaka University
and subsequently, BA Honours (1958) and MA (1962) in Modern
History from the Oxford University.
Habibur
Rahman began his career as a Lecturer in History of Dhaka
University in 1952. Later he joined Rajshahi University
where he subsequently held the office of Dean of the Faculty
of Law (1961) and of Reader in History (1962-64). Habibur
Rahman changed his profession in 1964 when he took to law
and joined the Dhaka High Court Bar. In his legal career
he held the offices of Assistant Advocate General (1969),
Vice President of High Court Bar Association (1972) and
member of bangladesh bar council (1972). He served as a
Judge of the High Court Division (1976-85), Judge of the
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (1985-95), Acting
Chief Justice (1990-91) and as chief justice of Bangladesh
(1995). His juristic competence is demonstrated in his opinions
and interpretations as pronounced in many of the Bangladesh
Supreme Court's decisions concerning vital issues, such
as, admiralty jurisdiction, amendment of the Constitution,
citizenship, habeas corpus, administrative tribunals and
court jurisdictions.
Habibur
Rahman retired from service as Chief Justice of Bangladesh
in 1995. As the last retiring Chief justice and according
to the constitutional provision for caretaker government,
he took oath as the Chief Advisor of the Caretaker Government
for conducting the elections of the jatiya sangsad in 1996.
A
researcher and writer Habibur Rahman has substantial contribution
in literature and in varied intellectual arena. Some of his
literary and other noted publications are as follows: Law
of Requisition (1966), Rabindra Prabandhey Sanjna O Parthakya
Bichar (1968), Jatha-sabda (1974), Matri-bhashar Sapakshey
Rabindranath (1983), Qoran-sutra (1984), Bachan O Prabachan
(1985), Gangariddhi thekey Bangladesh (1985), Rabindra Rachanar
Rabindra-byaksha (1986), Rabindra-kabyey Art, Sangeet O Sahitya
(1986), On Rights and Remedies, Amara ki Jabo-na Tader Kachhey
Jara Shudhu Banglai Katha Baley (1996). Justice Rahman was
awarded bangla academy Prize for Literature in 1985. He is
a fellow of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh; Fellow of the
Bangla Academy; Honorary Bencher, Lincoln's Inn.
Haraprasad Shastri
Shastri, Haraprasad (1853-1931) famous orientalist, Sanskrit
scholar. Born on 6 December 1853, Haraprasad Bhattacharya
(Shastri) hailed from the village Kumira in Khulna district.
He stayed with iswar chandra vidyasagar, friend of his elder
brother, at Calcutta and studied at the sanskrit college and
presidency college. He passed his Entrance in 1871, First
Arts in 1873, BA in 1876 and Honours in Sanskrit in 1877.
Later on he received the MA degree and the Shastri title.
In those days there was no MA examination; Honours graduates
were later awarded MA degrees. Shastri had the opportunity
of receiving education in modern schools and colleges instead
of tols and Chatuspathis. Though a student of Sanskrit at
the Sanskrit College, he had to study, according to the syllabus
of the Calcutta University, English Literature, Philosophy,
History, Political Economy, Algebra and Trigonometry. As a
result he could keep in touch with his root, Sanskrit, and
at the same time gained competence in many branches of modern
education.
Keeping
the family tradition Shastri entered the teaching profession
in 1878 as a translation-teacher in Hare School. In the
same year he taught for some time in Canning College, Lucknow.
In 1883 he became a Professor at the Sanskrit College, Calcutta
and concurrently worked as an Assistant Translator with
the Bengal government. Between 1886 and 1894, besides teaching
at the Sanskrit College he worked as the Librarian of the
Bengal Library. In 1895 he headed the Sanskrit department
at the Presidency College, became the Principal of Sanskrit
College in 1900 and retired from service in 1908 to join
the Bureau of Information of the government. On 18 June
1921 he joined the Dhaka University as the Professor and
Head of the Department of Bangla and Sanskrit and retired
on 30 June 1924. In spite of his eagerness he never got
the chance of teaching at the Calcutta University since
he did not pull well with Sir asutosh mookerjee, though
earlier they were friends.
At
a tender age Haraprasad was favoured with Vidyasagar's affection.
During his student life his friend, philosopher and guide
was Professor Rajkrishna Mukhopadhyaya (1845-86), whose Prathama
Shiksa Bangalar Itihasa (1874) had become, as commented by
Bankim Chandra, a good replacement for Indian Histories written
by English authors. Rajkrishna's historiographical ideas had
greatly influenced Shastri's researches. It was Rajkrishna
who introduced Shastri to Bankim Chandra and Shastri's maiden
research article Bharat Mahila, written during his student
days, was published in three consecutive issues of the bangadarshan
in 1282 BS. Shastri gradually became one of the major contributors
to Bangadarshan; about 30 of his articles on multifarious
subjects as well as novels were published in this journal
and Shastri established himself firmly in the realm of Bangla
literature.
Rai Bahadur Sen
Sen, (Rai Bahadur) Dinesh Chandra (1866-1939) pioneer in
recovering the rich treasure of folk songs, ballads and
literature of Bengal and builder of the Department of Bengali
Language and Literature of the university of calcutta. Dinesh
Chandra Sen was born in the village of Bogjuri in the district
of manikganj on 4 November 1866. While studying BA, Sen
lost his parents and had to drop out of school. He started
teaching at a school in sylhet. While working in the school,
Sen passed his BA examination with Honours in English in
1889 as a private student. He then moved to comilla, taking
a job at Victoria School.
It was at this time that Dinesh Chandra turned into an enthusiastic
collector of the surviving fragments of Bengal's past. He
moved from village to village collecting old Bangla manuscripts,
folk songs, folk myths and legends and folk language and
ballads, realising that, unless collected, these treasures
would soon perish and disappear forever. Based on his empirical
research, in 1986, he published his first monumental work
entitled Banga Bhasa O Sahitya (Bangla Language and Literature),
the first comprehensive and scientific study by any Bengali
scholar so far. This work fetched him instant recognition
as a scholar of rare ability.
Dinesh
Chandra Sen wrote and edited about 55 books in Bangla and
twelve books in English in addition to a large number of research
articles published in various learned journals. Apart from
Banga Bhasa O Sahitya, his works include Ramayani Katha (Tales
of Ramayana), 1904; Behula (a folk tale), 1907; Vaidik Bharat
(Vedic India: based on stories from the Vedas), 1922; Pauraniki
(Tales from the Puranas), 1934; and Brhat Banga (Greater Bengal:
a social history) in two volumes, 1935. His major English
works include History of Bengali Language and Literature (1911),
Sati (1916), The Vaishnava Literature of Medieval Bengal (1917),
The Folk-Literature of Bengal (1920), Bengali Prose Style,
Chaitanya and His Age (1922), Eastern Bengal Ballads of Mymensingh
in four volumes (1923-1932) and Glimpses of Bengal Life (1925).
Chowdhury Kazemuddin Ahmad Siddiky
Siddiky, Kazemuddin Ahmad (1876-1937) was a zamindar, social
worker and a political personality of Bengal towards the closing
years of the 19th century and the first three decades of the
20th century. Born in an aristocratic Muslim zamindar family
of the village of Baliadi under Kaliakair upazila of Gazipur
district in 1876, Chowdhury Kazemuddin Ahmad Siddiky claimed
his descent to Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (R), the first Caliph
of Islam. According to family tradition he was educated at
home and was well-versed in Bengali, English, Arabic, Persian
and Urdu languages.
As
a social worker, Chowdhury Kazemuddin Ahmad Siddiky paid attention
to the improvement of communication facilities in the locality
and donated lands for the construction of roads. At his initiative
the Kadda - Kaliakair, Kaliakair - Dhamrai and Sreepur - Phulbaria
roads were constructed. He founded some dispensaries and hospitals
and launched irrigation works for which he, however, did not
levy any extra charges on his tenants. He sanctioned Taka
10,000/- for the excavation and re-excavation of tanks, ponds
and wells. He even remitted the land revenue of his poor tenants
when they were unable to pay it for some reason or other.
On different occasions he extended donations to the Salimullah
Muslim Orphanage, Dhaka and saved the institution from acute
financial problems.
Khwaja Abdul Ghani,
Ghani, Khwaja Abdul (1813-1896) nawab of Dhaka, philanthropist,
social worker. Born on 30 July 1813 at Begumbazar, Dhaka.
Khwaja Abdul Ghani was the son of khwaja alimullah (d 1854)
and Zinat Begum. His mother tongue was Urdu, but he spoke
Bangla too. In his childhood, Ghani learnt Arabic and Persian
at home. One of the first batch students of Dhaka Collegiate
School, Ghani was also proficient in English.
Dhaka's
successful panchayet system owed a great deal to Abdul Ghani.
As President of the Panchayet, he used to give a turban to
the Panchayet leaders of different mahallas and conduct the
local administration of the city through them. He was awarded
the title of CM in 1871 and 'Nawab' in 1875. In 1876 the government
granted him 7 Turuk Sawars (Guard Regiment). In 1877 the title
of Nawab was made hereditary. He was made a KC in 1886 and
given the title of 'Nawab Bahadur' in 1892.
Khwaja
Abdul Ghani was a member of the Dhaka Municipality for a long
time. For the crippled and destitute he founded an asylum
(Langarkhana) in Dhaka in 1866. At a cost of about 250 thousand
rupees he set up a water supply plant in Dhaka city and donated
a lot of money to spread modern education in Dhaka, Mymensingh,
Comilla and Bakerganj districts. In 1863 he established a
High School at Kumartuli, which was later upgraded into Salimullah
College. He established Abdul Ghani High School at Jamurki,
Tangail.
Abdul Ghani died on Monday 24 August 1896 at the Ahsan Manzil
and lies buried at the family graveyard at Begumbazar in Dhaka.
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