Abdul Muntaquim Chaudhury ( bn, আব্দুল মুন্তাকীম চৌধুরী) is a

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 ...

politician, barrister and lawyer. He was a Member of the

3rd National Assembly of Pakistan The 3rd Parliament of Pakistan (from 1962-1964) was the unicameral legislature of Pakistan formed after the 4 years of martial law. There were 156 seats of members of Parliament, including 78 from East Pakistan and 78 from West Pakistan. East Pak ...

and the 1st Jatiya Sangsad.

Early life and background

Chaudhury was born in Hailakandi in the

Sylhet district Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট), located in north-east Bangladesh, is the divisional capital and one of the four districts in the Sylhet Division. History Sylhet district was established on 3 January 1782, and until 1878 it was part of Bengal Pro ...

of the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

's Assam Province. He belonged to an upper-class Bengali Muslim family known as the

Zamindars of Kanihati The Zamindars of Kanihati ( bn, কানিহাটির জমিদার), also known as the Chaudhury family of Kanihati ( bn, কানিহাটির চৌধুরী বংশ), are a notable zamindar family of the Sylhet region. Th ...

. His elder brother was Abdul Munim Chaudhury. His father,

Khan Bahadur Khan Bahadur – a compound of khan ('leader') and bahadur ('brave') – was a formal title of respect and honor, which was conferred exclusively on Muslim and other non-Hindu natives of British India. It was one degree higher than the title of K ...

Tajammul Ali Chaudhury, was the deputy commissioner and '' hakim'' of

Sylhet Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...

, and the author of the ''Tawārīkh-i-Halīmī'' (1894).

Career

Chaudhury was a member of the

. He supported numerous movements at the time such as the Bengali Language Movement and the Six point movement. During the

1970 Pakistani provincial elections Provincial elections were held in Pakistan on 17 December 1970, ten days after general elections. Members of the five Provincial assemblies were elected in Balochistan, East Pakistan, North West Frontier Province, Punjab and Sindh. Results Baloch ...

, he was elected as a member of the Pakistan National Assembly as an

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 ...

candidate. Chaudhury played an organising role during the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...

of 1971. Following independence, he was a member of the drafting committee of the Constitution of Bangladesh and played an important role regarding Article 70. He had argued against keeping a provision in the Constitution of Bangladesh that allowed for the expulsion of parliamentary members from parliament if they get expelled from their party. In the 1973 Bangladeshi elections, Chaudhury won the Sylhet-13 constituency, again as an

candidate. His initial roles with the

Government of Bangladesh The Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশ সরকার — ) is the central executive government of Bangladesh. The government was constituted by the Con ...

included serving as the ambassador to

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, initiating activities which led to the

Textile industry in Bangladesh The textile and clothing industries provide a single source of growth in Bangladesh's rapidly developing economy. Exports of textiles and garments are the principal source of foreign exchange earnings. By 2002 exports of textiles, clothing, a ...

. Chaudhury's close relationship with Hayakawa made him regarded as the architect of

Bangladesh–Japan relations Bangladesh–Japan relations ( bn, বাংলাদেশ-জাপান সম্পর্ক, ja, 日本とバングラデシュの関係) were established on 10 February 1972. By 2015, the bilateral annual trade of these two countries was ...

. One of the outcomes of this fruitful relationship was the establishment of the

JBIC The , JBIC, is a Japanese public financial institution and export credit agency that was created on October 1, 1999, through the merger of the Japan Export-Import Bank (JEXIM) and the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF). JBIC became the in ...

-funded

Pan Pacific Sonargaon Pan Pacific Sonargaon is a hotel in Dhaka. It is one of the oldest 5 star hotel in Bangladesh and is owned by the Government of Bangladesh and operated by Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts. History Hotels Internation Limited was established on 25 Ju ...

hotel in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaudhury, Abdul Muntaquim Pakistani MNAs 1962–1965 People from Kulaura Upazila Awami League politicians People of East Pakistan 1st Jatiya Sangsad members 20th-century Bangladeshi lawyers 20th-century Pakistani lawyers Pakistani barristers Ambassadors of Bangladesh to Japan Ambassadors of Bangladesh to South Korea Ambassadors of Bangladesh to Germany Bangladeshi people of Arab descent 1929 births Living people