Ayesha Bedora Choudhury (1935–1971) was a Bangladeshi doctor who was killed in the Bangladesh Liberation war and is considered a martyr in Bangladesh.
Early life
Ayesha was born on 6 April 1935 in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
,
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
,
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 ...
. Her parents were Imaduddin Choudhury and Kaniz Fatema Mahmud. She graduated from
Victoria Institution of Kolkata in 1951. She studied MBBS in the
Calcutta National Medical College and graduated in 1956. During her studies she received two gold medals for outstanding academic achievements. She was involved with left wing politics on campus.
Career
Ayesha's first job was in Gauhati Government Hospital in
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
,
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. She moved to
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 ...
,
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, and joined
Dhaka Medical College and Hospital. Afterwards she worked in the
State Bank of Pakistan as a Medical officer. On 25 March 1971,
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 ...
started. During the war she provided medical treatment to the Pro Independence
Mukti Bahini
The Mukti Bahini ( bn, মুক্তিবাহিনী, translates as 'freedom fighters', or liberation army), also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was the guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military, paramilitary ...
and gave them shelter.
Death
On 16 December 1971 Pakistan forces surrendered to an allied force of
Indian Armed Forces and the Mukti Bahini through the
Pakistani Instrument of Surrender
The Pakistani Instrument of Surrender ( bn, পাকিস্তানের আত্মসমর্পণের দলিল, translit=Pākistānēr Atmasamarpaṇēr Dalil) was a written agreement between India, Pakistan, and the Provisional ...
.
That day she went to Bangabandhu Bhaban in 18 Dhanmondi, the personal residence of the President of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. In the Bangabandhu Bhaban, the wife of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,
Begum Fazilatunnesa, and their two daughters,
Sheikh Rehana
Sheikh Rehana Siddiq (born 13 September 1957) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician. She is the younger sister of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the daughter of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. She is also the mother ...
and
Sheikh Hasina. When her car came near the gate, the Pakistani soldiers who were stationed there and did not know Pakistan had surrendered fired at her car. She and her chauffeur were killed in the firing.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Choudhury, Ayesha Bedora
1935 births
1971 deaths
Martyred intellectuals of the Bangladesh Liberation War
Medical doctors from Kolkata
20th-century Bangladeshi physicians