Shah Syed Gholam Sarwar Hosseini ( bn, শাহ সৈয়দ গোলাম সারোয়ার হুসেইনী) was a Bengali politician and the hereditary '' Pir of Daira Sharif'' in

Noakhali Noakhali ( bn, নোয়াখালী, , New canal), historically known as Bhulua ( bn, ভুলুয়া), is a district in southeastern Bangladesh, located in the Chittagong Division. It was established as district in 1821, and officia ...

Bengal Presidency 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 ...

Family

Sarwar was from a prominent

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the sec ...

family of

Sufi pir Peer or Pir ( fa, پیر, lit=elder) is a title for a Sufi spiritual guide. They are also referred to as a ''Hazrat'' (from ar, حضرة, Haḍra) and ''Sheikh'' or Shaykh, which is literally the Arabic equivalent. The title is often translate ...

s who were based in Dayra Sharif in Shyampur, present-day Ramganj,

Lakshmipur District Lakshmipur ( bn, লক্ষ্মীপুর, Lokkhipur), also spelt Laxmipur, with an area of 1455.96 km2, is a district of Bangladesh. It is bordered by Chandpur to the north, Bhola and Noakhali districts to the south, Noakhali to th ...

. His ancestor was a Syed who originally settled in Raipur, arriving from

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. Golam Sarwar's father and grandfather were known as pious people and followed strict religious rites. They were hereditary servants of Diyara Sharif of Shampur. Diyara Sharif was considered a holy place by all Hindus and Muslims in the area.

Career

He was an elected member of the

Bengal Legislative Assembly The Bengal Legislative Assembly () was the largest legislature in British India, serving as the lower chamber of the legislature of Bengal (now Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal). It was established under the Government of India Ac ...

, representing the radical or "extremist" wing of the

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 ...

. He was elected as a lawmaker in 1937 but lost in 6 September 1946, being unseated by an

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 ...

candidate.

Controversy

It is stated that Hosseini played an important role in the 1946

Noakhali riots The Noakhali riots were a series of semi-organized massacres, rapes and abductions, combined with looting and arson of Hindu properties, perpetrated by the Muslim community in the districts of Noakhali in the Chittagong Division of Bengal (n ...

. Ghulam Sarwar Hussaini and his followers started preparing the stage for the massacre by spreading provocative speeches in various rallies. Noakhali was a remote area as it was inhabited by many canals and rivers. He called on the persecuted

Biharis The Biharis () is a demonym given to the inhabitants of the Indian state of Bihar. Bihari people can be separated into three main Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic groups, Bhojpuris, Maithils and Magadhis. They are also further divided into a v ...

in Noakhali. To this end he created a force to provide the Biharis with security and accommodation. It was known as the Miyar Fauj (Miah's Army মিয়ার ফৌজ). On the morning of October 10, he sent a letter to Rajendralal Chowdhury through the Chowkidar and offered to discuss the matter. But when Rajendralal did not respond, Muhammad Ghulam Sarwar Hussaini called a rally of his loyal devotees and Muslims at Shahpur Bazar in the morning. There he highlighted the position of the Muslims at that time and called for the overthrow of the Hindu zamindars. Chittaranjan Roy Chowdhury, the zamindar of Raipur, could not accept the growing political power of the Muslims in Noakhali from the very beginning. With this Muhammad Golam Sarwar Hussaini started a conflict with him. However, Sarwar was sheltering the Biharis as well as making political efforts to stop the riots in

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...

and

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

. But the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

and the

did not respond to his efforts. He wrote letters to everyone and wanted a solution to indiscriminate killings. No one played a strong role in the solution and he was very disappointed.AH Rubel, নোয়াখালী দাঙ্গা (Bengali)

References

Krishak Sramik Party politicians People from Ramganj Upazila Year of birth missing 20th-century Bengalis Year of death missing Bengal MLAs 1937–1945 {{Bangladesh-politician-stub