Debesh Chandra Bhattacharya (3 November 1914 – 2 February 2004) was a Bangladeshi jurist who served at Bangladesh High Court and later at the Appellate Division of Bangladesh Supreme Court.[1][2]

Debesh Bhattacharya
Born(1914-11-03)3 November 1914
Died2 February 2004(2004-02-02) (aged 89)
Alma materCalcutta University
Occupation(s)Lawmaker, activist
SpouseChitra Bhattacharya
ChildrenDebapriya Bhattacharya

Early life edit

Bhattacharya was born on 3 November 1914 in Ellenga, Tangail District, East Bengal, British India.[3] He studied at the Ellenga Junior High School and graduated from Bindu Basini Govt. Boys' High School in 1931.[3] He completed his Indian School Certificate in 1933 and bachelors in 1935 from Presidency University, Kolkata.[3] In 1938, he finished his law degree from the Department of Law, University of Calcutta.[3] In 1940, he completed his master's in economics from the University of Calcutta.[3]

Career edit

Bhattacharya joined the Mymensingh District bar in 1941.[3] From 1949 to 1951, he was detained for supporting workers and farmers movements.[3] After his release he started practicing at the Dhaka High Court.[3]

In 1956, Bhattacharya became a lawyer of the Supreme Court and became a senior advocate in 1961.[3] He joined the Bar Council.[3] He served in the Rule Committee of the Dhaka High Court till the Independence of Bangladesh in 1971 when the court became the High Court Division.[3]

On 21 January 1972, Bhattacharya was appointed a Judge of the High Court Division and in June 1975 he was promoted to the Appellate Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court.[3] He retired from the bench in 1977 after President Ziaur Rahman reduced the retirement age of judges from 65 to 62.[3][4]

Bhattacharya was the founding president of Bangladesh Enemy Property Act Repeal Committee and was involved in the creation of Gono Adalat.[3] He was a member of Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, Bangladesh Peace Council, Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, Bangladesh Nagarik Committee, and Mahanagar Sarbajanin Puja Committee.[3] He was the president of Aleem-Al-Razi Law College which was named after Aleem al-Razee and Gandhi Ashram Trust.[3]

Death edit

Bhattacharya died on 2 February 2004.[3]

Personal life edit

Bhattacharya was married to Chitra Bhattacharya. Chitra (1926-2010) was elected as a member of parliament from Tangail's reserved seat for women in 1996 on a nomination of Awami League.[5] They had two sons, economist Debapriya Bhattacharya and physicist Debadarshi Bhattacharya, and one daughter Debalina Roy.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ Irina Bhattacharya (November 3, 2014). "A tribute to Justice Debesh Bhattacharya". The Daily Star. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  2. ^ "In memoriam : Justice Debesh Bhattacharya". The Daily Star. February 5, 2004. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Debapriya Bhattacharya. "Bhattacharya, Justice Debesh Chandra". Banglapedia. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  4. ^ "19 SC judges removed during Zia, Ershad, Khaleda regimes". Daily Sun. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  5. ^ bdnews24.com. "Chitra Bhattacharya passes away". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2022-08-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ "Chitra Bhattacharya passes away". The Daily Star. November 30, 2010. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2015.