Abdur Rahman Biswas
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Abdur Rahman Biswas (1 September 1926 – 3 November 2017) was a Bangladeshi politician. He was the
President of Bangladesh The president of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের রাষ্ট্রপতি — ) officially the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশে ...
from 1991 to 1996. Biswas represented Pakistan at the
United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
prior to the independence of Bangladesh.


Early life and education

Biswas was born in Shaistabad village,
Barisal District Barisal District, officially spelled Barishal District from April 2018, is a district in south-central Bangladesh, formerly called Bakerganj district, established in 1797. Its headquarters are in the city of Barisal, which is also the headqua ...
. He was educated at the
University of Dhaka 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 ...
, where he received BA with honours and an MA in history and a degree in law. His subsequent public service included chairing a local cooperative bank and sponsoring educational initiatives. He joined the legal profession in the 1950s. He was elected president of the Barisal Bar Association twice in the 1970s and worked as a Supreme Court lawyer.


Political career

Biswas started his political career when he joined the
Muslim League Muslim League may refer to: Political parties Subcontinent ; British India *All-India Muslim League, Mohammed Ali Jinah, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan. **Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organ ...
during
Ayub Khan Ayub Khan is a compound masculine name; Ayub is the Arabic version of the name of the Biblical figure Job, while Khan or Khaan is taken from the title used first by the Mongol rulers and then, in particular, their Islamic and Persian-influenced s ...
's regime. He was elected as a representative to the
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 ...
Legislative Assembly in 1962 and 1965. In 1967, he represented Pakistan at the
UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
. He became chairman of Barisal Municipality in 1977. He became a member of parliament in the
1979 Bangladeshi general election General elections were held in Bangladesh on 18 February 1979. The result was a victory for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which won 207 of the 300 seats. Voter turnout was 51.3%. The Awami League became the main opposition party after winnin ...
. He served as minister of textiles and
jute Jute is a long, soft, shiny bast fiber that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', which is in the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ''Corchorus olit ...
under the cabinet of President
Ziaur Rahman Lt. General Ziaur Rahman (19 January 1936 – 30 May 1981), was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1977 to 1981. He was assassinated on 30 May 1981 in Chittagong in an army coup d' ...
, and later as health minister under President
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الستّار) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)". Because the letter s is a sun lett ...
. He served as a vice-chairman of the
Bangladesh Nationalist Party The Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল, Bangladesh Jātīyotābādī Dol; BNP) is a centre-right to right-wing nationalist, political party in Bangladesh and one of the major ...
. He elected as a member of parliament in the 1991 election and soon after got selected as the Speaker of the Parliament. He became Bangladesh's 16th president on 10 September the same year.


President of Bangladesh

For most of his tenure as president, Biswas spent his time reading and meeting dignitaries including
Nobel laureate The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...
physicist
Abdus Salam Mohammad Abdus Salam Salam adopted the forename "Mohammad" in 1974 in response to the anti-Ahmadiyya decrees in Pakistan, similarly he grew his beard. (; ; 29 January 192621 November 1996) was a Punjabi Pakistani theoretical physicist and a ...
,
Prime Minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Paki ...
,
Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...
, the
Prime Minister of Nepal The Prime Minister of Nepal ( ne, नेपालको प्रधानमन्त्री) is the head of government of Nepal. The Prime Minister is the head of the Council of Ministers of Nepal and the chief adviser to the President of N ...
,
Jigme Singye Wangchuck Jigme Singye Wangchuck ( dz, འཇིགས་མེད་སེང་གེ་དབང་ཕྱུག་, ; born 11 November 1955) is a member of the House of Wangchuck who was the king of Bhutan (Druk Gyalpo) from 1972 until his abdicati ...
, the
King of Bhutan The Druk Gyalpo (; 'Dragon King') is the head of state of the Kingdom of Bhutan. In the Dzongkha language, Bhutan is known as ''Drukyul'' which translates as "The Land of the Thunder Dragon". Thus, while kings of Bhutan are known as ''Druk ...
and the Malaysian Prime Minister
Mahathir Bin Mohamad Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...
. As head of the
Caretaker government of Bangladesh The Caretaker Government of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের তত্ত্বাবধায়ক সরকার) was a form of government in which Bangladesh used to be ruled by a selected government for an interim period du ...
, however, he faced challenges from the
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
and political instability in the country.


February 1996 election

From mid-1994, clashes between the BNP backed Jatioabadi Chhatra Dal and
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 ...
backed
Bangladesh Chhatra League The Bangladesh Chhatra League ( bn, বাংলাদেশ ছাত্রলীগ; translation: Bangladesh Students' League; BSL), formerly known as the East Pakistan Student League, often simply called the Chhatra League, is a students' p ...
led to increasing violence in the form of bomb and arson attacks on party bureaus, newspaper offices and government buildings. In the midst of violence, the opposition led by the Awami League's
Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina Wazed (''née'' Sheikh Hasina ; ; bn, শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ, Shēkh Hasinā, , born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Prime Minister ...
, pledged to boycott national elections scheduled for 15 February 1996. When
Khaleda Zia Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...
's BNP was re-elected for the second term in that election, it was boycotted and denounced by the three main opposition parties. On 26 March, in the face of increasing opposition, the newly elected parliament enacted the thirteenth constitutional amendment bill paving the way for the appointment of an interim caretaker government.


June 1996 election

On 28 March 1996, Biswas signed the
Caretaker Government A caretaker government is a temporary ''ad hoc'' government that performs some governmental duties and functions in a country until a regular government is elected or formed. Depending on specific practice, it usually consists of either randomly se ...
bill into law, which was welcomed by
human rights organisation A human rights group, or human rights organization, is a non-governmental organization which advocates for human rights through identification of their violation, collecting incident data, its analysis and publication, promotion of public awareness ...
s. As a result, Biswas dissolved the newly elected legislature and, as Khaleda Zia stepped down, while appointed former Chief Justice
Habibur Rahman Habib ur Rahman ( ar, حبیب الرحمان , link=no) is an Arabic male given name, meaning ''friend of the Merciful One''. It may refer to: *Habib Ur Rehman (Nayab Sahab; Born 1957), Indian politician. *Hakim Habibur Rahman (1881–1947), Unan ...
was appointed as chief adviser to head an interim government that was poised to preside over fresh national elections on 12 June 1996.


1996 coup

On 19 May 1996, Biswas, as head of a caretaker government, ordered the army chief Lieutenant General
Abu Saleh Mohammad Nasim Abu Saleh Mohammad Nasim Bir Bikrom (born 4 January 1946) is a former Chief of Army Staff of the Bangladesh Army. In 1996, he attempted a military coup of the caretaker government which was preparing for general elections. After failure of the ...
to force the retirement of Major-General Morshed Khan, commander of Bogra Cantonment, and Brigadier Miron Hamidur Rahman, deputy chief of paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles. Both officers had issued statements expressing dissatisfaction with the country's situation. The President believed that they were involved in political activities with opposition parties. Nasim refused to comply. The next day, Biswas sacked him and sent soldiers to control the state radio and television stations. On noon that day, Nasim ordered soldiers of
Bogra Bogra ( bn, বগুড়া), officially known as Bogura, is a major city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in Rajshahi Divi ...
,
Jessore Jessore ( bn, যশোর, jôshor, ), officially Jashore, is a city of Jessore District situated in Khulna Division. It is situated in the south-western part of Bangladesh. It is the administrative centre (headquarter) of the eponymous district ...
and
Mymensingh Mymensingh ( bn, ময়মনসিংহ) is the capital of Mymensingh Division, Bangladesh. Located on the bank of Brahmaputra River, about north of the national capital Dhaka, it is a major financial center and educational hub of north ...
divisions to march towards
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 ...
. The Ninth Infantry Division's Major General Imamuzzaman, who commanded the division located closest to Dhaka, remained loyal to the President. He directed the removal of all boats and ferries from
Jamuna River The Jamuna River ( bn, যমুনা ''Jomuna'') is one of the three main rivers of Bangladesh. It is the lower stream of the Brahmaputra River, which originates in Tibet as Yarlung Tsangpo, before flowing into India and then southwest into ...
in
Aricha Aricha is a small village located in the extreme south of Tlemcen Province in Northwestern Algeria. It lies at the intersection of Tlemcen Province in the north, the Wilaya de Sidi Bel Abbes to the east and south Wilaya of Naâma to the west the ...
port, so that Bogra and Jessore divisions could not cross the river. Biswas sent a contingent of troops with tanks to blockade the Dhaka-Mymenshing highway. This prevented Mymensingh Division Army from entering Dhaka. In the meantime,
Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Mohammad Anwar Hossain, General Officer Commanding of the 33rd Infantry Division located in
Comilla Comilla (; bn, কুমিল্লা, Kumillā, ), officially spelled Cumilla, is the fifth largest city of Bangladesh and second largest in Chittagong division. It is the administrative centre of the Comilla District. The name Comilla was ...
, also came to the aid of the president. He mobilised a fully geared 101 Infantry Brigade, under the command of Brigadier Shah Ikram (later Major General) to Dhaka to fortify
Bangabhaban The Bangabhaban ( bn, বঙ্গভবন ''Bôngobhôbôn'', lit. ''House of Bengal'') is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of Bangladesh, located on Bangabhaban Road, and short road connecting Dilkusha, Dhaka, ...
, the presidential palace. The 33rd Division was deployed, using an Infantry Battalion and a company of tanks from the 7th Horse Armoured Battalion at the
Dhaka-Chittagong highway The N1 or Dhaka–Chittagong Highway is a main transportation artery in Bangladesh, between Dhaka and Chittagong. Approximately in length, the road links the country's two largest cities, Dhaka and Chittagong. The highway is known along vari ...
, to create a blockade against the 24th Infantry Division located in Chittagong. The government broadcast announcements asking all soldiers to stay at their own cantonment. After some hours, Mymensingh Division soldiers returned to their barracks. The Chittagong Division never mobilised towards Dhaka. The General Officer Commanding of the Chittagong Division realised that the military coup was highly unlikely to succeed. That night Nasim was interviewed by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
and, in reference to troop movements, he said that as Army Chief, he could move troops anytime he wanted. Nasim was arrested by the Brigade Commander of 14 Independent Engineers Brigade and put under house arrest in the Army Mess behind Army Central Library, Staff road,
Dhaka Cantonment Dhaka Cantonment ( bn, ঢাকা সেনানিবাস) is a cantonment located in the northern part of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The headquarters of the Bangladesh Army, and Bangladesh Air Force, Air Force are situated within the cantonment w ...
. Later 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 ...
government, which was elected to power in 1996, granted him a formal retirement. Biswas later recalled the events as his "most memorable experience." He stepped down as president on 9 October 1996 and was succeeded by
Shahabuddin Ahmed Shahabuddin Ahmed (1 February 1930 – 19 March 2022) served as the President of Bangladesh from 1996 to 2001, and the Chief Justice of Bangladesh from 1990 to 1995. He previously served as the acting president during 1990–91 when Hussain Mu ...
.


Personal life

Biswas was married to Hosne Ara Rahman (1934 – 17 June 2017) a cousin of politician
Rashed Khan Menon Rashed Khan Menon (born 18 May 1943) is a Bangladeshi politician. He is the president of Workers Party of Bangladesh and was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dhaka-8 in the 2008 general election. Menon was re-elected at the 2014 gen ...
. Together they had five sons Monu Biswas, Ehteshamul Haque Nasim (12 November 1960 - 12 March 1998), Shamsuddoza Kamal Biswas, Jamilur Rahman Shibli Biswas, and Muidur Rahman Romel Biswas, and two daughters Akhi Biswas and Rakhi Biswas.


Later life

After the end of his presidency, Biswas retired permanently from politics. In 2006, during the unfolding crisis, Biswas's house in Barisal was set on fire by
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 ...
activists. Biswas died on 3 November 2017 at
United Hospital, Dhaka United Hospital Limited () is a private hospital in Gulshan Thana, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Mohammad Faizur Rahman is the Managing Director and CEO of the hospital. United Hospital Limited along with Evercare Hospital Dhaka and Square Hospital are con ...
from respiratory problems, aged 91. He was buried in Banani Graveyard on 4 November.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biswas, Abdur Rahman 1926 births 2017 deaths People from Barisal District Bangladesh Nationalist Party politicians Presidents of Bangladesh Speakers of the Jatiya Sangsad 20th-century Bangladeshi lawyers University of Dhaka alumni Burials at Banani Graveyard 5th Jatiya Sangsad members 20th-century Pakistani lawyers