This is a list of Selected Biographies that appear on the main page of the portal, numbered according to their position in the selection queue.
Selected biography 1
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Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose (Bengali: জগদীশ চন্দ্র বসু Jôgodish Chôndro Boshu; November 30), 1858 – November 23, 1937) was a Bengali physicist and science fiction writer, who pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics, made extremely significant contributions to plant science, and laid the foundations of experimental science in the Indian subcontinent. He is considered the father of radio science, and is also considered the father of Bengali science fiction. He was the first from the Indian subcontinent to get a US patent, in 1904.
Born in Bengal province of British India, Bose completed graduation from St. Xavier's College, Calcutta. Then he went to the University of London to study medicine, but couldn't complete his study due to health problems. He returned to India and joined the Presidency College, Kolkata as a Professor of Physics. There, in spite of racial discrimination, and lack of funding and equipment, Bose carried on his scientific research. He made remarkable progress in his research of remote wireless signaling and was the first to use semiconductor junction to detect radio signals. However, instead of trying to gain commercial benefit from this invention Bose made his inventions public in order to allow others to develop on his research. Subsequently he made some pioneering discoveries in plant physiology. He used his own invention crescograph to measure plant response to various stimuli, and thereby scientifically proved parallelism between animal and plant tissues. Although Bose filed for patent for one of his inventions due to peer pressure his reluctance to any form of patenting was well known. Now about 70 years of after his death he is being credited for many of his contributions to modern science. (more...)
Selected biography 2
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Sher-e-Bangla (Urdu phrase meaning 'The Tiger of Bengal') Abul Kashem Fazlul Huq (Bengali: আবুল কাশেম ফজলুল হক) (26 October 1873—27 April 1962) was a well-known Bengali statesman in the first half of the 20th century. He held different political posts including those of the Mayor of Calcutta (1935), Chief Minister of undivided Bengal (1937-1943) and East Bengal (1954), Home Minister of Pakistan (1955) and Governor of East Pakistan (1956-58).
Huq entered the Bengal Legislative Council in 1913 as an elected member from the Dhaka (Dacca) Division. For 1913-1916 Huq served as the Secretary of the Bengal Provincial Muslim League and Joint Secretary of the All India Muslim League. Then he served as the President of the All India Muslim League from 1916 to 1921. He played an instrumental role in formulating the Lucknow Pact of 1916 between the Congress and the Muslim League. In 1917 Huq became Joint Secretary of the Indian National Congress and in 1918-1919 he served this organisation as its General Secretary.
In 1935, with the Congress' support, Fazlul Huq was chosen and elected first Muslim mayor of Calcutta. Prior to 1937 election, Fazlul Huq reorganized the defunct Proja-Shamiti and renamed it as Krishak Praja Party (KPP). Later that year Sher-e-Bangla joined Muslim League and subsequently become the chairman of the Bengal headquarter of the party. Afterwards he acted as the Chief Minister (also called Premier) of undivided Bengal between 1937 to 1943. Fazlul Huq drafted and moved the Lahore Resolution on 23 March, 1940. According to this resolution, North-eastern and Eastern parts of India happened to be formed as sovereign states.[clarification needed] It established Muslim League's demand for a homeland for Muslims, that ultimately resulted in the nation of Pakistan. However after 1942 Huq actually opposed the Two-Nation Theory and tried to mobilise non-Muslim League Muslim leaders against Partition of India. (more...)
Selected biography 3
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Rabindranath Tagore (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali poet, Brahmo Samaj (syncretic Hindu monotheist) philosopher, visual artist, playwright, composer, and novelist whose works reshaped Bengali literature and music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A cultural icon of Bengal and India, he became Asia's first Nobel laureate when he won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature.
A Pirali Bengali Brahmin from Calcutta (Kolkata), India, Tagore first wrote poems at age eight. He published his first substantial poetry — under the pseudonym Bhanushingho ("Sun Lion") — in 1877 and wrote his first short stories and dramas at age sixteen. His home schooling, life in Shilaidaha, and travels made Tagore a nonconformist and pragmatist ; however, growing disillusionment with the British Raj caused Tagore to back the Indian Independence Movement and befriend Mahatma Gandhi. Despite losing virtually his entire family and his sorrow at witnessing Bengal's decline, his life's work — Visva-Bharati University — endured.
Tagore's works included Gitanjali (Song Offerings), Gora (Fair-Faced), and Ghare-Baire (The Home and the World), while his verse, short stories, and novels — many defined by rhythmic lyricism, colloquial language, meditative naturalism, and philosophical contemplation — received worldwide acclaim. Tagore was also a cultural reformer and polymath who modernised Bangla art by rejecting strictures binding it to classical Indian forms. Two songs from his rabindrasangeet canon are now the national anthems of Bangladesh and India: the Amar Shonar Bangla and the Jana Gana Mana.
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Selected biography 4
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Atiśa Dipankara Shrijnana (Bengali: অতীশ দীপঙ্কর শ্রীজ্ঞান; 982-1054 CE) was a Buddhist teacher from the Bengal region of old Indian territory who, along with Konchog Gyalpo and Marpa, was one of the major figures in the establishment of the Sarma lineages in Tibet after the repression of Buddhism by King Langdarma (Glang Darma).
The great Buddhist monk and scholar Atisha is most commonly said to have taken birth in the year 980 in Bikrampur, the northeastern region of Bengal (in modern day Bangladesh). Atisha was ordained into the Mahasamghika lineage at the age of twenty-eight by the Abbot Shilarakshita and studied almost all Buddhist and non-Buddhist schools of his time, including teachings from Vishnu, Shiva, Tantric Hinduism and other beliefs. Famous for his skills in teaching, debate and philosophy, Atisha was appointed to the position of steward, or abbot, at the venerable Buddhist college Vikramasila, established by the King Dharmapala of Bengal. When the Tibet king invited Atisha to visit Tibet to help revitalize Buddhism after its decline following ninth-century persecutions, Atisha accepted the offer. Atisha's arrival in Tibet was one of the seminal events of the "Second Diffusion" of Buddhism and his impact on the practice of Buddhism in the region was enormous.
Atisha remains an important figure in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition for several reasons. First, he refined, systematized, and compiled an innovative and thorough approach to bodhichitta known as "mind training" (Tib. lojong), in such texts as A Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, and established the primacy of bodhichitta to the Mahayana tradition in Tibet. Second, after King Langdarma’s intolerant reign, the monastic Buddhist tradition of Tibet had been nearly wiped out. Atisha’s closest disciple, Dromtönpa, is considered the founder of the Kadam school, which later evolved into the Gelug, one of the four main school of Tibetan Buddhism. Finally, Atisha mobilized his influence in India towards the goal of reforming the impurities and redirecting the development of Buddhism there, in the native country of the Shakayumi Buddha. For these reasons and more, Atisha remains a central figure in the history and religious study of Buddhism. (more)
Selected biography 5
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Emperor Humayun (full title: Al-Sultan al-'Azam wal Khaqan al-Mukarram, Jam-i-Sultanat-i-haqiqi wa Majazi, Sayyid al-Salatin, Abu'l Muzaffar Nasir ud-din Muhammad Humayun Padshah Ghazi, Zillu'llah) (March 17, 1508 – March 4, 1556) (OS March 7, 1508-OS February 22, 1556) was the second Mughal Emperor who ruled modern Afghanistan, Pakistan, and parts of northern India from 1530–1540 and again from 1555–1556. Like his father, Babur, he lost his kingdom early, but with Persian aid, he eventually regained an even larger one. On the eve of his death in 1556, the Mughal empire spanned almost 250 million acres (1,000,000 km2).
He succeeded his father in India in 1530, while his half-brother Kamran Mirza, who was to become a rather bitter rival, obtained the sovereignty of Kabul and Lahore, the more northern parts of their father's empire. He originally ascended the throne at the age of 22 and was somewhat inexperienced when he came to power.
Humayun lost his Indian territories to the Afghan Sultan, Sher Shah Suri, and, with Persian aid, regained them fifteen years later. Humayun's return from Persia, accompanied by a large retinue of Persian noblemen, signalled an important change in Mughal Court culture, as the Central Asian origins of the dynasty were largely overshadowed by the influences of Persian art, architecture, language and literature. Subsequently, in a very short time, Humayun was able to expand the Empire further, leaving a substantial legacy for his son, Akbar the Great (Akbar-e-Azam). (more)
Selected biography 6
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Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Bengali: শেখ মুজিবর রহমান; March 17, 1920 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Bengali: শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান Shekh Mujibur Rôhman; March 17, 1920 – August 15, 1975) was a Bengali political leader in East Pakistan and the founding leader of Bangladesh. He headed the Awami League, served as the first President of Bangladesh and later became its Prime Minister. He is popularly referred to as Sheikh Mujib, and with the honorary title of Bangabandhu (বঙ্গবন্ধু Bôngobondhu, "Friend of Bengal"). His eldest daughter Sheikh Hasina Wajed is the present leader of the Awami League and a former prime minister of Bangladesh.
A student political leader, Mujib rose in East Pakistani politics and within the ranks of the Awami League as a charismatic and forceful orator. An advocate of socialism, Mujib became popular for his leadership against the ethnic and institutional discrimination of Bengalis. He demanded increased provincial autonomy, and became a fierce opponent of the military rule of Ayub Khan. At the heightening of sectional tensions, Mujib outlined a 6-point autonomy plan, which was seen as separatism in West Pakistan. He was tried in 1968 for allegedly conspiring with the Indian government but was not found guilty. Despite leading his party to a major victory in the 1970 elections, Mujib was not invited to form the government.
After talks broke down with President Yahya Khan and West Pakistani politician Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Mujib was arrested and a guerrilla war erupted between government forces and Bengali nationalists aided by India. An all out war between the Pakistan Army and Bangladesh-India Joint Forces led to the establishment of Bangladesh, and after his release Mujib assumed office as a provisional president, and later prime minister. Even as a constitution was adopted, proclaiming socialism and a secular democracy, Mujib struggled to address the challenges of intense poverty and unemployment, coupled with rampant corruption. Amidst rising popular agitation, he banned other political parties and declared himself president for life in 1975. After only seven months, Mujib was assassinated along with his family by a group of army officers. (more...)
Selected biography 7
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Bagha Jatin (Bengali: বাঘা যতীন), born Jatindranath Mukherjee (Jotindrônath Mukhopaddhæe) was a Bengali Indian revolutionary philosopher against British rule. Jatin was born on 7 December 1879 in Kayagram, a village in the Kushtia subdivision of Nadia district in present day Bangladesh. Jatin spent his early life at in his ancestral home at Jhenaidah and in his maternal home at Kushtia. He moved to Calcutta after passing the Entrance examination. Several sources mention Jatin as being among the founders of the Anushilan Samiti in 1900. The Samiti activities subsequently spread to many of the districts of Bengal flourished particularly at Kushtia, where Jatindra Nath was the leader. In 1906 Jatin servived an attack by a Bengal Tiger and managed to kill the tiger with only a dagger. This act of heroism made him famous.
A few years later Jatin became the principal leader of the Yugantar party that was the central association of revolutionaries in Bengal. Having personally met the German Crown-Prince in Calcutta shortly before the World War I, he had obtained the promise of arms and ammunition from Germany; as such, he was responsible for the planned German Plot during World War I. Another of his original contributions was the indoctrination of the Indian soldiers in various regiments in favour of an insurrection. Bagha Jatin was injured by police bullets near Chashakhand in Balasore. He died in Balasore hospital on 10 September 1915. (more)
Selected biography 8
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Kazi Nazrul Islam (Bengali: কাজী নজরুল ইসলাম) (25 May 1899–29 August 1976) was a Bengali poet, musician, revolutionary, and philosopher who pioneered poetic works espousing intense spiritual rebellion against orthodoxy and oppression. His poetry and nationalist activism earned him the popular title of Bidrohi Kobi (Rebel Poet). Accomplishing a large body of acclaimed works through his life, Nazrul is officially recognised as the national poet of Bangladesh and commemorated in India.
Born in a poor Muslim family, Nazrul received religious education and worked as a muezzin at a local mosque. He learned of poetry, drama, and literature while working with theatrical groups. After serving in the British Indian Army, Nazrul established himself as a journalist in Kolkata (then Calcutta). He assailed the British Raj in India and preached revolution through his poetic works, such as "Bidrohi" ("The Rebel") and "Bhangar Gaan" ("The Song of Destruction"), as well as his publication "Dhumketu" ("The Comet"). His impassioned activism in the Indian independence movement often led to his imprisonment by British authorities. While in prison, Nazrul wrote the "Rajbandir Jabanbandi" ("Deposition of a Political Prisoner") and condemned Islamic fundamentalism, orthodox traditions and bigotry in society. Exploring the life and conditions of the downtrodden masses of India, Nazrul agitated fiercely for their emancipation.
Nazrul's writings explore themes such as love, freedom, and revolution; he opposed all bigotry, including religious and gender. Throughout his career, Nazrul wrote short stories, novels, and essays but is best-known for his poems, in which he pioneered new forms such as Bengali ghazals. Nazrul wrote and composed music for his nearly 3,000 songs, collectively known as Nazrul geeti (Nazrul songs), which are widely popular today. At the age of 43 (in 1942) he began suffering from an unknown disease, losing his voice and memory. What was later diagnosed as Pick's Disease, caused Nazrul's health to decline steadily and forced him to live in isolation for many years. Invited by the Government of Bangladesh, Nazrul and his family moved to Dhaka in 1972, where he died four years later. (more...)
Selected biography 9
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Ziaur Rahman (Bengali: জিয়াউর রহমান Ziaur Rôhman) (January 19, 1936 – May 30, 1981) was the President of Bangladesh and the founder of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Popularly called Zia, he is also sometimes referred to as a Shaheed (Martyr). His widow Begum Khaleda Zia has served as Prime Minister of Bangladesh three times.
An officer in the Pakistan Army, Zia's unit captured the Kalurghat radio station at the onset of the Bangladesh Liberation War and declared the independence of Bangladesh on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Recognised as a war hero, he was honoured with the Bir Uttom in 1972. A high-ranking officer in the Bangladesh Army, Zia was appointed chief of army staff following the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975. Although briefly overthrown in a counter-coup, Zia returned to power in a military coup organised by Colonel Abu Taher.
Declaring himself president in 1977, Zia won a referendum held in 1978. Founding the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Zia won widespread popular support for stabilising the nation and leading it in a new direction. A right-wing politician, Zia established free-market policies in a 19-point programme of industrialisation and development. He adopted policies bringing the government increasingly under Islam, which he included in the national constitution. Zia controversially pardoned the assassins of Sheikh Mujib by signing the Indemnity Act and rehabilitated individuals who had supported the Pakistan Army. A popular yet controversial leader, Zia was assassinated in 1981 in an abortive military coup. (more...)
Selected biography 10
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Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi social entrepreneur, banker, economist and civil society leader who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for founding the Grameen Bank and pioneering the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. These loans are given to entrepreneurs that are too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. Yunus and the Grameen Bank were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts through microcredit to create economic and social development from below". The Norwegian Nobel Committee said that "lasting peace cannot be achieved unless large population groups find ways in which to break out of poverty" and that "across cultures and civilizations, Yunus and Grameen Bank have shown that even the poorest of the poor can work to bring about their own development". Yunus has received several other national and international honours. He received the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010.
In February 2011, Yunus together with Saskia Bruysten, Sophie Eisenmann and Hans Reitz co-founded Yunus Social Business – Global Initiatives (YSB). YSB creates and empowers social businesses to address and solve social problems around the world. As the international implementation arm for Yunus' vision of a new, humane capitalism, YSB manages incubator funds for social businesses in developing countries and provides advisory services to companies, governments, foundations and NGOs.
In 2012, he became Chancellor of Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland, a position he held until 2018. Previously, he was a professor of economics at Chittagong University in Bangladesh. He published several books related to his finance work. He is a founding board member of Grameen America and Grameen Foundation, which support microcredit.
Yunus also served on the board of directors of the United Nations Foundation, a public charity to support UN causes, from 1998 to 2021. (Full article...)
Selected biography 11
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Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar, also known as Akbar the Great (November 23, 1542 – October 17 or October 27, 1605) was the son of Nasiruddin Humayun whom he succeeded as ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1556 to 1605. He was the grandson of Babur who founded the Mughal dynasty. On the eve of his death in 1605, the Mughal empire spanned almost 500 million acres (doubling during Akbar's reign).
Akbar, widely considered the greatest of the Mughal emperors, was only 13 when he ascended throne of Delhi, due to the death of his father Humayun. It took him better part of two decades to consolidate and bring parts of northern and central india in his realm. During his reign, he reduced external military threats from the Afghan descendants of Sher Shah by waging wars against Afghan tribes, and at the Second Battle of Panipat he defeated the Hindu king Samrat Hemu Chandra Vikramaditya, also called Hemu. Emperor solidified his rule by pursuing diplomacy with the powerful Rajput caste, and by admitting Rajput princesses in his harem.
Akbar was an artisan, artist, armorer, blacksmith, carpenter, emperor, general, inventor, animal trainer (reputedly keeping thousands of hunting cheetahs during his reign and training many himself), lacemaker, technologist and theologian. His most lasting contributions were to the arts. He initiated a large collection of literature, including the Akbar-nama and the Ain-i-Akbari, and incorporated art from around the world into the Mughal collections. He also commissioned the building of widely admired buildings, and invented the first prefabricated homes and movable structures. Akbar began a series of religious debates where Muslim scholars would debate religious matters with Sikhs, Hindus, Cārvāka atheists and even Jesuits from Portugal. He founded his own religious cult, the Din-i-Ilahi or the "Divine Faith"; however, it amounted only to a form of personality cult for Akbar, and quickly dissolved after his death leaving his wife behind. (more)
Selected biography 12
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Zāhir ud-Dīn Mohammad, commonly known as Bābur (February 14, 1483 – December 26, 1530) (Chaghatay/Persian: ﻇﻬﻴﺮ ﺍﻟﺪﻳﻦ محمد بابر; also spelled Zahiruddin, Zahiriddin, Muhammad, Bobur, Baber, Babar, etc.), was a Muslim Emperor from Central Asia who founded the Mughal dynasty of South Asia. He was a direct descendant of Timur, and believed himself to be a descendant also of Genghis Khan through his mother. Following a series of set-backs he succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal Empire.
The Mughal Empire was an important imperial power in the Indian Subcontinent from the early sixteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries. At the height of its power, around 1700, it controlled most of the subcontinent and parts of what is now Afghanistan. Its population at that time has been estimated as between 100 and 150 million, over a territory of over 3 million square km. Following 1720 it declined rapidly. Its decline has been variously explained as caused by wars of succession, agrarian crises fueling local revolts, the growth of religious intolerance and British colonialism. The last Emperor, whose rule was restricted to the city of Delhi, was imprisoned and exiled by the British after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. (more...)
Selected biography 13
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Khondaker Sakib Al-Hassan (Shakib Al Hasan; Bengali: খন্দকার সাকিব আল হাসান; born 24 March 1987) is a Bangladeshi cricketer and politician. He is a member of Parliament. He is known for his aggressive left-handed batting style in the middle order and controlled slow left-arm orthodox bowling. He is widely regarded as the greatest Bangladeshi cricketer and one of the greatest all rounders of all time.
Shakib Al Hasan made his Test debut in 2007 against India. His breakthrough came in the Test against New Zealand in Chittagong in 2008 where he picked up 7 wickets for 36 runs, the best figures by a Bangladeshi bowler at the time. He quickly established himself as one of the team's leading performers. He has scored over 4,000 runs and taken more than 200 wickets in the format. He has also captained the team on their first-ever Test match win over England in 2016. In ODIs, Shakib has been more successful. He has scored over 6,000 runs and taken more than 270 wickets in the format, becoming the fastest and only player in history to achieve the double of 5,000 runs and 250 wickets in ODIs. In the 2012 Asia Cup, Shakib scored 237 runs, including three fifties, and took six wickets. Bangladesh progressed to the tournament's final for the first time, but eventually lost to Pakistan by 2 runs. He is considered one of the most impactful players of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, where he broke record of maximum runs scored in the group stages of the world cup which was previously held by Sachin Tendulkar and finished as the third-highest run-scorer scoring 606 runs in total at the tournament.
In 2006, Shakib made his T-20 debut against Zimbabwe. He has played for various T20 tournaments around the world for many teams, including Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Jamaica Tallawahs and Dhaka Dominators, where he won the Indian Premier League (IPL) twice with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2012 and 2014. He also won the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) title 3 times in 2012, 2013 and 2016 with Dhaka Dominators. He was named the player of the tournament in BPL four times in 2012, 2013, 2018 and 2022. He has won 41 man-of-the-match awards, highest for Bangladesh and 16 man-of-the-series awards, 3rd highest, all formats. Between 2009 and 2022, he captained the Bangladesh cricket team in 120 matches across all three formats.
Shakib Al Hasan is an integral asset to the Bangladesh cricket team and has been a consistent performer for his country over the years. He is the most controversial figure in Bangladesh, always making it to the top of the news headlines. He was ranked the 90th most famous athlete in the world by ESPN in 2019. He was included in the ICC Men's Team of the Year twice (2009, 2021). As of October 2023, Shakib holds the record for the 2nd most men's T20 International wickets. (Full article...)
Selected biography 14
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Sheikh Hasina Wazed (Bengali: শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again since January 2009. She is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father and first president of Bangladesh. Having served for a combined total of over 19 years, she is the longest serving prime minister in the history of Bangladesh. As of 17 April 2024, she is the world's longest-serving female head of government.
As the autocratic regime of Hussain Muhammad Ershad came to an end, Hasina, leader of the Awami League (AL), lost the 1991 election to Khaleda Zia, with whom she had collaborated against Ershad. As leader of the opposition, Hasina accused Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of electoral dishonesty and boycotted the parliament, which was followed by violent demonstrations and political turmoil. Zia resigned to a caretaker government, followed by Hasina becoming prime minister after the June 1996 election. While the country began to experience economic growth and a reduction in poverty, it remained in political tumult during her first term, which ended in July 2001 after an electoral defeat from Zia. This was the first full five-year term for a Bangladeshi prime minister since it became an independent country.
During the 2006–2008 political crisis, Hasina was detained on extortion charges. After her release from jail, she won the 2008 election. In 2014, she was re-elected for a third term in an election that was boycotted by the BNP and criticised by international observers. In 2017, after nearly a million Rohingya entered the country, fleeing genocide in Myanmar, Hasina received credit and praise for giving them refuge and assistance. She won her fourth term after the 2018 election, which was marred with violence and widely criticised as being rigged.
Under her tenure as prime minister, Bangladesh has experienced democratic backsliding. Human Rights Watch documented widespread enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings under her government. Many politicians and journalists have been systematically and judicially punished for challenging her views. In 2021, Reporters Without Borders gave a negative assessment of Hasina's media policy for curbing press freedom in Bangladesh since 2014. Hasina was among Time's 100 most influential people in the world in 2018, and among the 100 most powerful woman in the world by Forbes magazine in 2015, 2018, and 2022. (Full article...)
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Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani (Bengali: আব্দুল হামিদ খান ভাসানী, 12 December 1880 – 17 November 1976), was a popular Islamic scholar and political leader in British India (now Bangladesh). He remained a rural-based politician renowned for selflessness and solidarity with the oppressed. His long political tenure spanned the British colonial India, Pakistan and Bangladesh periods.
Maulana Bhashani is popularly known with the honorary title Mazlum Jananeta (Leader of the Oppressed) for his lifelong stance for the poor suffered by establishment. He gained nationwide mass popularity among peasants and helped to build East Pakistan Peasant Association. Owing to his leaning to the left, often dubbed Islamic Socialism, he is also called 'The Red Maulana'.
An alumnus of Deoband, and participant of the Khilafat Movement protesting the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire he led the Muslims of Assam in a successful campaign during the 1947 Sylhet Referendum, through which Sylhet chose to become part of the Pakistan national project. He was the founder and President of the Pakistan Awami Muslim League which later became Awami League (AL). Later however, owing to differences with the right-leaning leaders in the AML, such as Shahid Suhrawardy, on the issue of autonomy for East Pakistan, he formed a new progressive party called National Awami Party (NAP).
He played a very critical role in the 1969 movement which eventually led to the collapse of the Ayub regime and the release of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other co-accused in the Agartala conspiracy case against Pakistan. His decision to boycott the 1970 Pakistan general elections due to his mistrust of the West Pakistani leaders, effectively led to the electoral sweep by erstwhile opponent Mujibur Rahman. (more...)