A.K. Fazlul Huq
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Abul Kasem Fazlul Huq ( bn, আবুল কাশেম ফজলুল হক, ur, ; 26October 1873 — 27 April 1962), popularly known as Sher-e-Bangla (''Lion of Bengal''), was a
British Indian British Indians are citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) whose ancestral roots are from India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian origin as well as Indians who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise about 1.4 mil ...
and Pakistani lawyer and writer who presented the Lahore Resolution which had the objective of creating an independent Pakistan. He also served as the first and longest
Prime Minister of Bengal The Prime Minister of Bengal was the head of government of Bengal Presidency, Bengal Province and the Leader of the House in the Bengal Legislative Assembly in British India. The position was dissolved upon the Partition of Bengal (1947), Partitio ...
during the British Raj. Born on 1873 in a Bengali Muslim family in
British Bengal The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...
, Huq held important political offices in the subcontinent, including President of the
All India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party established in Dhaka in 1906 when a group of prominent Muslim politicians met the Viceroy of British India, Lord Minto, with the goal of securing Muslim interests on the Indian subcontin ...
(1916-1921), General Secretary of the Indian National Congress (1916-1918), Education Minister of Bengal (1924), Mayor of Calcutta (1935), Prime Minister of Bengal (1937-1943), Advocate General of East Bengal (1947-1952), Chief Minister of East Bengal (1954), Home Minister of Pakistan (1955-1956) and Governor of East Pakistan (1956-1958). Huq was first elected to the Bengal Legislative Council from Dhaka in 1913; and served on the council for 21 years until 1934. Huq was a key figure in the Indian independence movement and then the Pakistan movement. In 1919, he had the unique distinction of concurrently serving as President of the All India Muslim League and General Secretary of the Indian National Congress. He was also a member of the Congress Party's committee enquiring into the Amritsar massacre. Huq was a member of the Central Legislative Assembly from 1934 to 1936. Between 1937 and 1947, he was an elected member of the Bengal Legislative Assembly, where he was Prime Minister and Leader of the House for six years. After
partition Partition may refer to: Computing Hardware * Disk partitioning, the division of a hard disk drive * Memory partition, a subdivision of a computer's memory, usually for use by a single job Software * Partition (database), the division of a ...
, he was elected to the East Bengal Legislative Assembly, where he was Chief Minister for 2 months; and to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, where he was Home Minister for one year during the 1950s. Huq boycotted titles and a knighthood granted by the British government. He was notable for his English oratory during speeches to the Bengali legislature. Huq courted the votes of the Bengali middle classes and rural communities. He pushed for land reform and curbing the influence of zamindars. As Prime Minister, Huq used legal and administrative measures to reduce the debt of millions of farmers subjected to tenancy under the Permanent Settlement. Huq was considered a
leftist Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
and social democrat on the political spectrum. His ministries were marked by intense factional infighting. In 1940, Huq had one of his most notable political achievements when he presented the Lahore Resolution which called for the creation of a sovereign state in the Muslim-majority eastern and northwestern parts of British India. During the Second World War, Huq joined the Viceroy of India's Defence Council and supported
Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
war efforts. Under pressure from the
Governor of Bengal The Governor was the chief colonial administrator in the Bengal presidency, originally the "Presidency of Fort William" and later "Bengal province". In 1644, Gabriel Boughton procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them to ...
during the
Quit India The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule i ...
movement and after the withdrawal of the
Hindu Mahasabha The Hindu Mahasabha (officially Akhil Bhārat Hindū Mahāsabhā, ) is a Hindu nationalist political party in India. Founded in 1915, the Mahasabha functioned mainly as a pressure group advocating the interests of orthodox Hindus before the B ...
from his cabinet, Huq resigned from the post of premier in March 1943. In the Dominion of Pakistan, Huq worked for five years as East Bengal's Attorney-General and participated in the Bengali Language Movement. He was elected as Chief Minister, served as a federal minister and was a provincial governor in the 1950s. Huq died in Dacca, East Pakistan on 27 April 1962. He is buried in the
Mausoleum of Three Leaders The Mausoleum of Three Leaders ( bn, তিন নেতার মাজার, also known as the Suhrawardy Udyan National Memorial), located at Shahbag, Dhaka in Bangladesh, contains the graves of three prominent leaders of Pakistan Movement fro ...
. Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, where the National Parliament is located, is named in honour of Huq. His son
A. K. Faezul Huq Abul Kalam Faezul Huq (A. K. Faezul Huq) ( bn, এ. কে. ফায়জুল হক) (15 March 1945 – 19 July 2007) was a Bangladeshi politician, lawyer, and columnist. Huq served as a member of parliament on three occasions, and held vario ...
was a Bangladeshi politician.


Early life and family

Huq was born on 26 October 1873, in his maternal home, the Mia Bari of
Saturia Saturia is a town in Manikganj District in the Dhaka Division of central Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Saturia Upazila Saturia ( bn, সাটুরিয়া) is an upazila of Manikganj District in the Division of Dhaka, Ban ...
in
Jhalokati Jhalokati ( bn, ঝালকাঠি) is a town in Jhalokati district in the Barisal Division, division of Barisal in southern Bangladesh. It is the administrative headquarter and the largest town of Jhalokati district. The town covers an area of ...
, then under the Backergunge District of the Bengal Presidency. He belonged to a middle-class Bengali Muslim family of Qadis hailing from Bilbilash in Bauphal, Patuakhali. His ancestors had settled in Bilbilash in the eighteenth century, having arrived from Bhagalpur in Bihar. His father, Qazi Muhammad Wajid, was a well-regarded lawyer of the Barisal Bar and his grandfather, Qazi Akram Ali, also worked in the Barisal Court and was a Mukhtar as well as a scholar of the Arabic and Persian languages. His mother, Begum Sayedunnesa, was a descendant of Shaykh Ahmad Sajenda, a disciple of Khan Jahan Ali.


Education

Initially
home school Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...
ed, Huq later attended the Barisal District School, where he passed the FA Examination in 1890. Huq was so brilliant that upon turning the page of a book he could memorise the whole page which astonished his father. Huq moved to Calcutta for his higher education. He sat for his bachelor's degree exam in 1894, in which he achieved a triple honours in chemistry, mathematics and physics from the Presidency College (now Presidency University). He then obtained a master's degree in mathematics from the University of Calcutta in 1896. He obtained his
Bachelor in Law Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
from the University Law College in Calcutta in 1897.


Civil servant and lawyer

From 1908 to 1912, Huq was the Assistant Registrar of Co-operatives. He resigned from public service and opted for public life and law. Being advised by Sir
Ashutosh Mukherjee Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee (anglicised, originally Asutosh Mukhopadhyay, also anglicised to Asutosh Mookerjee) (29 June 1864 – 25 May 1924) was a prolific Bengali educator, jurist, barrister and mathematician. He was the first student to be awar ...
, he joined the bar council of the
Calcutta High Court The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in India. It is located in B.B.D. Bagh, Kolkata, West Bengal. It has jurisdiction over the state of West Bengal and the Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The High Court buildi ...
and started legal practice. He practised in the Calcutta High Court for 40 years.


Legislator and Indian independence movement

Huq became secretary of the
Bengal Provincial Muslim League The Bengal Provincial Muslim League (BPML) was the branch of the All India Muslim League in the British Indian province of Bengal. It was established in Dacca on 2 March 1912. Its official language was Bengali. The party played an important role i ...
in 1913. After the First Partition of Bengal, Huq attended the All India Muhammadan Educational Conference hosted by Sir Khwaja Salimullah in Dacca, the capital of Eastern Bengal and Assam. The conference led to the formation of the All India Muslim League. The annulment of the partition led to the formation of the Bengal Provincial Muslim League, in which Huq became secretary. With the patronage of Sir Salimullah and
Syed Nawab Ali Chowdhury Syed Nawab Ali Chowdhury (29 December 1863 – 17 April 1929) was Nawab of Dhanbari of Tangail in East Bengal (modern day Bangladesh). He was one of the founders of Dhaka University. He was the first Muslim minister of united Bengal. He was mini ...
, he was elected to the Bengal Legislative Council from the Dacca Division in 1913. In 1916, Huq was elected president of the All India Muslim League. Huq was one of those who was instrumental behind formulating the
Lucknow Pact The Lucknow Pact was an agreement reached between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League (AIML) at a joint session of both the parties held in Lucknow in December 1916. Through the pact, the two parties agreed to allow representation t ...
of 1916 between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League. In 1917 Huq was a Joint Secretary of the Indian National Congress and from 1918 to 1919 he served as the organisation's
General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
. He was the only person to concurrently hold the presidency of the League and the General Secretary's position in the Congress. In 1918, Huq presided over the Delhi Session of the All India Muslim League. In 1919, Huq was chosen as a member of the Punjab Enquiry Committee along with Motilal Nehru, Chittaranjan Das and other prominent leaders which was set up by the Indian National Congress to investigate the Amritsar massacre. Huq was the president of the Midnapore Session of the Bengal Provincial Conference in 1920. During the
Khilafat movement The Khilafat Movement (1919–24), also known as the Caliphate movement or the Indian Muslim movement, was a pan-Islamist political protest campaign launched by Muslims of British India led by Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Hakim Ajma ...
, Huq led the pro-British faction within the Bengal Provincial Muslim League, while his rival Maniruzzaman Islamabadi led the pro- Ottoman faction. Huq also differed with the Congress leadership during its non-cooperation movement. Huq favoured working within the constitutional framework rather than boycotting legislatures and colleges. He later resigned from the Congress. In 1923, Huq served as education minister of Bengal for six months under the dyarchy system. In 1929, he founded the All Bengal Tenants Association, which evolved into a political platform, including as a part of the post-partition United Front.


Prime Minister of Bengal


First Premiership (1937-1941)

The dyarchy was replaced by provincial autonomy in 1935, with the first general elections held in 1937. Huq transformed the All Bengal Tenants Association into the
Krishak Praja Party The Krishak Sramik Party ( bn, কৃষক শ্রমিক পার্টি, ''Farmer Labourer Party'') was a major anti-feudal political party in the British Indian province of Bengal and later in the Dominion of Pakistan's East Bengal and ...
. During the election campaign period, Huq emerged as a major populist figure in Bengal. His party won 35 seats in the Bengal Legislative Assembly during the
1937 Indian provincial elections Provincial elections were held in British India in the winter of 1936-37 as mandated by the Government of India Act 1935. Elections were held in eleven provinces - Madras, Central Provinces, Bihar, Orissa, United Provinces, Bombay Presidency, A ...
. It was the third largest party after the Bengal Congress and Bengal Provincial Muslim League. Huq formed a coalition with the Bengal Provincial Muslim League and independent legislators. He was elected as the Leader of the House and the first Prime Minister of Bengal.


Cabinet

Huq's cabinet included
Nalini Ranjan Sarkar Nalini Ranjan Sarkar () (1882–25 January 1953) was an Indian businessman, industrialist, economist, and public leader. He was greatly involved in the political and economic regeneration of Bengal. Sarkar was Finance Minister of West Bengal in ...
(finance),
Bijoy Prasad Singh Roy Sir Bijoy Prasad Singh Roy, KCIE (1894, Calcutta 24 November 1961, Calcutta) was an Indian politician. Biography Singh Roy studied at the Hindu School and the Presidency University, Kolkata, and received a Bachelor and Master of Laws from the ...
(revenue), Maharaja
Srish Chandra Nandy Srish Kumar Nandy (10 October 1897 – 23 February 1952) was the last zamindar of Cossimbazar Raj and a writer, politician and landlord of Bengal. He was eldest son of Sir Maharaja Manindra Chandra Nandy and Maharani Kashishwari"The Indian a ...
(communications and public works), Prasanna Deb Raikut (forest and excise), Mukunda Behari Mallick (cooperative credit and rural indebtedness), Sir Khwaja Nazimuddin (home), Nawab Khwaja Habibullah (agriculture and industry), Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy (commerce and labour), Nawab Musharraf Hussain (judicial and legislative), and Syed Nausher Ali (public health and local self-government).


Debt relief and Permanent Settlement

Under Huq, the Bengal government used administrative and legal measures to relieve the debt of millions of tenant farmers under the '' zamindari'' system of the Permanent Settlement. Huq hailed from a middle class zamindar family. Many of his colleagues were also from the zamindar class. But Huq represented a new generation of Bengali middle-class political consciousness which won support among both Bengali Muslims and Bengali Hindus. The
Krishak Praja Party The Krishak Sramik Party ( bn, কৃষক শ্রমিক পার্টি, ''Farmer Labourer Party'') was a major anti-feudal political party in the British Indian province of Bengal and later in the Dominion of Pakistan's East Bengal and ...
promoted land reform. Huq's tenure saw the enactment of the Bengal Agricultural Debtors' Act (1938), the Money Lenders' Act (1938) and the Bengal Tenancy (Amendment) Act (1938). Debt Settlement Boards were created in all districts. The Land Revenue Commission, appointed by the Government of Bengal on 5 November 1938 with Sir Francis Floud as chairman, submitted its final report on 21 March 1940. This was a valuable document relating to the land system of the country. The Tenancy Act of 1885 was amended by suspending rent provisions for ten years. Huq abolished informal taxes imposed traditionally by the zamindars on tenants. The tenants obtained the right to transfer their tenancy without paying any transfer-fee to zamindars. The law reduced the interest rate for arrears of rent from 12.50% to 6.25%. The tenants also obtained the right to get possession of the (land lost through river erosion which then reappeared) by payment of four years' rent within twenty years of the erosion. These measures resulted in debt relief for millions of Bengali peasants. But Huq failed to fully implement his Rice and Lentils program which he campaigned for during the 1937 election.


Lahore Resolution

A seminal moment in Huq's political career was the adoption of the Lahore Resolution. The resolution was passed by the All India Muslim League at its annual session in Lahore on 23 March 1940. When Huq arrived at the Lahore meeting,
Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
remarked "When the tiger (Huq) arrives, the lamb (Jinnah) must give away". Huq formally proposed the resolution at the annual session. The resolution called for Muslim-majority provinces in British India to be grouped into "Independent States in which the constituent units shall be autonomous and sovereign". The initial wording of the resolution suggested that the Muslim League wanted multiple states instead of a single state. Huq later accused Jinnah of not working hard enough to ensure an undivided Bengal with Calcutta included. There have been varying interpretations of the Lahore Resolution ever since. One interpretation is that the plural spelling of 'states' indicated that Huq wanted a separate Muslim-majority state covering Bengal and parts of Assam as early as the 1940s.


Education

Huq held the education portfolio in his cabinet. He introduced the Primary Education Bill in the Bengal Legislative Assembly, which was passed into law and made primary education free and compulsory. But there was a storm of protests from the opposition members and the press when Fazlul Huq introduced the Secondary Education Bill in the assembly as it incorporated 'principles of communal division in the field of education' at the secondary stage. Huq was a supporter of affirmative action for Bengali Muslims. Huq was associated with the foundation of many educational institutions in Bengal, including Calcutta's
Islamia College ''Islamia'' is a genus of small freshwater snails with a gill and an operculum, aquatic gastropod mollusks in the family Hydrobiidae. MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Islamia Radoman, 1973. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Spe ...
and
Lady Brabourne College Lady Brabourne College (LBC) is an institution for women's education in Kolkata, India. The college admits undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees from the University of Calcutta. It is a state government administered college and is ...
, Wajid Memorial Girls' High School and Chakhar College.


Rift with the Muslim League

In 1941, Huq joined the Viceroy's Defence Council, which was formed to oversee the war effort of British India during World War II. Huq was joined by
Sir Sikandar Hayat Khan ''Khan Bahadur'' Captain Sir Sikandar Hayat Khan, (5 June 1892 – 26 December 1942), also written Sikandar Hyat-Khan or Sikandar Hyat Khan, was an Indian politician and statesman from the Punjab who served as the Premier of the Punjab, among ...
, the Prime Minister of the Punjab. The growing influence of provincial Muslim League leaders like Huq and Khan was resented by Jinnah. The Muslim League leadership, led by Jinnah and his allies, demanded that both the Bengal and Punjab PMs withdraw from the Defence Council. Khan eventually complied but Huq refused. The breakdown in relations between Huq and Jinnah led to Huq's ouster from the Muslim League. Jinnah's allies in Bengal thereafter worked to bring down Huq's government. Jinnah felt the Defence Council was tilted towards the Congress. On 2 December 1941, Huq resigned and Governor's rule was imposed.


Second Premiership (1941-1943)

The second Huq coalition government was formed on 12 December 1941. The coalition was supported by most members in the Bengal Legislative Assembly, except for the Muslim League. Supporters included the secular faction of the Krishak Praja Party led by Shamsuddin Ahmed, the Forward Bloc founded by Subhash Chandra Bose, pro-Bose members of the Bengal Congress and the
Hindu Mahasabha The Hindu Mahasabha (officially Akhil Bhārat Hindū Mahāsabhā, ) is a Hindu nationalist political party in India. Founded in 1915, the Mahasabha functioned mainly as a pressure group advocating the interests of orthodox Hindus before the B ...
led by Syama Prasad Mukherjee.


Cabinet

The cabinet included Nawab Bahadur Khwaja Habibullah, Khan Bahadur Abdul Karim, Khan Bahadur Hashem Ali Khan, Shamsuddin Ahmed, Syama Prasad Mukherjee, Santosh Kumar Bose and Upendranath Barman.


Tensions with the Governor and WWII

Despite Huq enjoying the confidence of most of the assembly, he had tense relations with the Governor of Bengal, John Herbert. The governor favoured the provincial Muslim League leaders and patrons, including Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin, the Leader of the Opposition; and the "Calcutta Trio" in the assembly ( Mirza Ahmad Ispahani, Khwaja Nooruddin and A. R. Siddiqui). The focal point of the League's campaign against Huq was that he was growing closer to Syama Prasad Mukherjee of the Hindu Mahasabha, who was alleged to be working against the political and religious interests of the Muslims. The League appealed to the governor to dismiss the Huq ministry. The fear of a Japanese invasion during the Burma Campaign and the implementation by the military of a 'denial policy' implemented in 1942 caused considerable hardship to the delta region. A devastating cyclone and tidal waves whipped the coastal region on 26 October but relief efforts were hindered due to bureaucratic interference. On 3 August, a number of prisoners were shot in Dhaka jail but no inquiry could be held due to bureaucratic intervention. Another severe strain on the administration was caused when the Congress launched the
Quit India The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule i ...
movement on 9 August, which was followed by British political repression. The entire province reverberated with protest. The situation was further complicated when Mukherjee resigned, bitterly complaining about the interference of the governor in the work of the ministry. Huq also called for the resurrection of the
Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Govern ...
. On 15 March 1943, the Prime Minister disclosed on the floor of the Assembly that on several occasions, under the guise of discretionary authority, the governor disregarded the advice tendered by the ministry and listed those occasions. The governor did not take those allegations kindly, and, largely due to his initiative, no-confidence motions were voted in the assembly on 24 March and 27 March. On both occasions the motions were defeated, although by narrow margins. To enforce his writ, the governor asked Huq to sign a prepared letter of resignation on 28 March 1943 and assigned himself the responsibility of administering the province under the provision of Section 92 of the constitution. A month later a League dominated ministry was commissioned with Nazimuddin as the Prime Minister. Huq bitterly criticised John Herbert for forcing his resignation and imposing Governor's rule, calling it "an outrage on the Constitution". Huq also criticised the colonial bureaucracy's role against his government, stating that "the steel frame of the Imperial Service" made a mockery of the authority of the elected government of Bengal. Huq accused John Herbert of being an ignorant administrator, stating "After all, even busy Governors absent themselves from town on private business". Huq paraphrased the ancient Greek philosopher Plutarch, stating "The mills of God grind slowly but they grind exceeding small; and sooner perhaps than Sir John Herbert or the supporters of the Ministers may think, Nemesis will overtake those who azimuddinhad rushed to office not to serve the people but to enjoy the sweets of power emoluments". Huq's party won significantly fewer seats during the
1946 Indian provincial elections Provincial elections were held in British India in January 1946 to elect members of the legislative councils of British Indian provinces. The consummation of British rule in India were the 1945/1946 elections. As minor political parties were el ...
in which the Muslim League led by Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy triumphed.


Political career in Pakistan


Opposition leader and language movement

After the partition of British India, Huq settled in Dhaka and became the
attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
of the Government of East Bengal. He served in this position between 1947 and 1952. Huq was active in the civil society and social life of Dhaka. On 31 December 1948, while delivering a presidential address at a literary conference, Huq proposed a
language academy This is a list of bodies that consider themselves to be authorities on standard languages, often called language academies. Language academies are motivated by, or closely associated with, linguistic purism and prestige, and typically publish pr ...
for the Bengali language. He supported the Bengali Language Movement in 1952. Huq was injured during police action against demonstrators demanding that Bengali be made a state language of Pakistan. Huq emerged as one of the principal opposition leaders against the Pakistan Muslim League. East Bengal became the epicentre of Pakistan's political opposition. The Bengalis of East Bengal were the demographic majority of the Dominion of Pakistan. Huq was one of the founding statesmen of Pakistan due to his role in presenting the Lahore Resolution in 1940.


In government

The
East Bengali legislative election, 1954 Legislative elections were held in East Bengal between 8 and 12 March 1954, the first since Pakistan became an independent country in 1947. The opposition United Front led by the Awami League and Krishak Sramik Party won a landslide victory with ...
was the first major democratic election in Pakistan's history. Huq was the leader of the opposition United Front alliance, which included his
Krishak Sramik Party The Krishak Sramik Party ( bn, কৃষক শ্রমিক পার্টি, ''Farmer Labourer Party'') was a major anti-feudal political party in the British Indian province of Bengal and later in the Dominion of Pakistan's East Bengal and ...
, the
Awami League In Urdu language, Awami is the adjectival form for '' Awam'', the Urdu language word for common people. The adjective appears in the following proper names: *Awami Colony, a neighbourhood of Landhi Town in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan *Awami Front, wa ...
, the Ganatantri Dal and the Nizam-e-Islam Party. Huq toured the districts of East Bengal extensively during the election campaign. He was joined by Awami League leader Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy and Suhrawardy's protege Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Maulana Bhashani also supported Huq. Suhrawardy and Huq jointly campaigned in several districts, including Faridpur. The United Front won a landslide victory during the 1954 election. The Muslim League was routed and reduced to only a few seats in the East Bengal Legislative Assembly. Huq himself defeated his arch rival Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin in the constituency of Patuakhali in Barisal. Huq served as Chief Minister for two months. During his short lived government, he took measures to establish the Bangla Academy. King Saud of Saudi Arabia sent a plane to Dhaka to bring Huq for a meeting with the monarch in Karachi. Governor General's rule was imposed which ended Huq's leadership of the provincial government. Pakistan's political parties continued to squabble, particularly over power sharing between the provinces. In August 1955, a coalition between the Krishak Sramik Party in East Pakistan and the Muslim League in West Pakistan allowed Chaudhry Mohammad Ali to become Prime Minister and A. K. Fazlul Huq to become Home Minister. The first constitution of Pakistan was enacted under this coalition in March 1956. The coalition was later dismissed by President Iskander Mirza, who in turn allowed a coalition of the Awami League and
Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...
to form government. Huq's former ally Suhrawardy became Prime Minister. As a result, the Krishak Sramik Party and the Muslim League formed the main opposition. Huq and Surhawardy were once again on opposite ends. Huq was appointed Governor of East Pakistan in 1956. He served in the position for two years until the
1958 Pakistani coup d'état The 1958 Pakistani coup d'état began on October 7, when the first President of Pakistan Iskander Mirza abrogated the Constitution of Pakistan and declared martial law, and lasted until October 27, when Mirza himself was deposed by Gen. Ayub Kha ...
. The coup ended the dominance of Huq, Suhrawardy and Nazimuddin in Bengali politics.


Writings

A.K. Fazlul Huq wrote a book ''Bengal Today'' which was translated into Bengali. He was one of three owner-cum-directors of the well regarded evening daily '' Nabajug'' which came often under British-Indian government's proscription because of its anti-imperialist premise. The paper is no longer published.


Notable quotations


Quotes by Huq

* * * * * * *


Quotes about Huq

* * *


Personal life

Huq married three times. His first wife was Khurshid Talat Begum, the granddaughter of
Nawab Abdul Latif Nawab Bahadur Abdul Latif (1828 – 10 July 1893) was a 19th-century Bengali aristocrat, educator and social worker. His title, ''Nawab'' was awarded by the British in 1880. He was one of the first Muslims in 19th-century India to embrace the i ...
, with whom he had two daughters. Khurshid left him and obtained a maintenance allowance in court. His second wife was Musammat Jannatunissa Begum, daughter of Ibn Ahmad of Hooghly, but she died without having any children. In 1943, he married Khadija Begum of Meerut, located in the United Provinces. They had one son together,
A. K. Faezul Huq Abul Kalam Faezul Huq (A. K. Faezul Huq) ( bn, এ. কে. ফায়জুল হক) (15 March 1945 – 19 July 2007) was a Bangladeshi politician, lawyer, and columnist. Huq served as a member of parliament on three occasions, and held vario ...
, who played an active role in Bangladeshi politics. Huq was fluent in
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
, English, Urdu, Arabic, and Persian.


Legacy

Huq founded several educational and technical institutions for Bengali Muslims, including Islamia College in Calcutta,
Baker Hostel Baker Hostel is a government hostel located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. The hostel was founded in 1910 during the rule of the British Raj by Edward Norman Baker, the then Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. The hostel is located at 8 Smith Lane i ...
and Carmichael hostel residence halls for Muslim students of the University of Calcutta,
Lady Brabourne College Lady Brabourne College (LBC) is an institution for women's education in Kolkata, India. The college admits undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees from the University of Calcutta. It is a state government administered college and is ...
, Adina Fazlul Huq College in Rajshahi, Eliot hostel, Tyler Hostel, Medical College hostel, Engineering College hostel, Muslim Institute Building, Dhaka
Eden Girls' College Eden Mohila College (known as Eden College), is a women's college in Azimpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was established in 1873 in the Farashganj area of Dhaka. In 1878 the school was named after Ashley Eden, Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. The colle ...
Building, Fazlul Huq College at Chakhar, Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall (
Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
), Fazlul Huq Hall (Bangladesh Agricultural University, then East Pakistan Agricultural University), Sher-e-Bangla Hall ( Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology) Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (SAU) Dhaka-1207, Bulbul Music Academy and Central Women's College. Huq made a significant contribution in founding the leading university of Bangladesh: Dhaka University. During his premiership Bangla Academy was founded and Bengali New Year's Day ( Pohela Boishakh) was declared a public holiday. In Bangladesh, he is revered as one of the most important Bengali statesmen of the 20th century and for his role as a leading voice of Bengali Muslims in British India. Throughout Bangladesh, educational institutions (e.g., Barisal
Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Sher-e-Bangla Medical College (SBMC) is a government medical school in Bangladesh, established in 1968. The college is located in Barisal. It is affiliated with University of Dhaka as a constituent college. SBMC awards MBBS degree and offers p ...
), roads, neighbourhoods (
Sher-e-Bangla Nagor Sher-e-Bangla Nagar ( bn, শেরেবাংলা নগর; lit. ''City of the Tiger of Bengal'') is a neighborhood and a thana of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It is also known as the 'capitol within the capital' due to it being the ho ...
), and stadiums (
Sher-e-Bangla Mirpur Stadium The Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium (SBNCS; bn, শের-ই-বাংলা জাতীয় ক্রিকেট স্টেডিয়াম), also called Mirpur Stadium, is an International cricket ground in Mirpur, a few kilo ...
) have been named after him. In Pakistan, he is remembered as one of the country's founding statesmen. One of the main roads in Islamabad, Pakistan A.K. Fazal-ul-Huq Road is named after him.


See also

*
Legislatures of British India The Legislatures of British India included legislative bodies in the presidencies and provinces of British India, the Imperial Legislative Council, the Chamber of Princes and the Central Legislative Assembly. The legislatures were created under Ac ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Huq, A. K. Fazlul Bengali Muslims Bengali politicians All India Muslim League members Indian National Congress politicians Leaders of the Pakistan Movement University of Calcutta alumni 1873 births 1962 deaths Mayors of Kolkata Founders of Indian schools and colleges Governors of East Pakistan People of East Pakistan Indian people of World War II Pakistan Movement activists from Bengal Krishak Sramik Party politicians Pakistani MNAs 1947–1954 Pakistani MNAs 1955–1958 Chief Ministers of East Pakistan 20th-century Bengalis 19th-century Bengalis People from Patuakhali district Indian independence activists from Bengal Indian lawyers Bengal MLAs 1937–1945