Hamidul Huq Chowdhury ( bn, হামিদুল হক চৌধুরী) ( ur, حمید الحق چودھری) (1901–1992) was a

Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( bn, বাংলাদেশী ) are the citizens of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centered on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the eponymous bay. Bangladeshi citizenship was formed in 1971, when the ...

politician. He was the founder of ''The Pakistan Observer'', an English-language newspaper which changed its name to ''

The Bangladesh Observer ''The Bangladesh Observer'', founded by Hamidul Huq Choudhury in 1949, was the oldest, continuously published English-language daily newspaper in Bangladesh until it ceased publication in June 2010. History Since its inception as ''The Pakist ...

'' after 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 ...

. He was educated 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 ...

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 ...

, and had a career as a lawyer, politician and newspaper proprietor.

Early life

Hamidul Huq Chowdhury was born in Ramnagar village, Daganbhuiyan upazila,

Feni District Feni is a district located in southeastern Bangladesh. It was a part of the Greater Noakhali, Comilla, Chittagong and Tripura. , the district's estimated population stood at 1,437,371, making it the ninth-most populous district in Chittagong Divis ...

, (now

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

) during 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 ...

in 1901. Hamidul Huq was educated at the Dacca Collegiate School in Dhaka,

Scottish Church Collegiate School The Scottish Church Collegiate School is a school in north Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Notable alumni * Lalbehari De, Religious Leader and Writer. * Turiyananda, Religious Leader. * Dhan Gopal Mukerji, First successful Indian man of letter ...

and Presidency College in Calcutta and the Law College of the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate State university (India), state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered ...

. He was admitted as an Advocate before the Calcutta High Court and served for a time as a Crown Prosecutor. Hamidul Huq also served as a Legal Remembrancer for the Calcutta High Court. Following Partition in 1947, he had a long and distinguished legal practice before the

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 subsequently Bangladesh High Courts, and celebrated his Golden Jubilee (50 years) as an advocate and member of the legal profession in 1987, at his residence, Neerala Garden House, Tejgaon, in Dhaka.

Career

Hamidul Huq was elected to the

Bengal Legislative Council The Bengal Legislative Council ( was the legislative council of British Bengal (now Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal). It was the legislature of the Bengal Presidency during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. After reforms wer ...

in 1937 (serving as Deputy President of the council) and was re-elected to the body in 1946. During his tenure on the council, Hamidul Huq was a member of the Bengal Imperial Agriculture Council, Central Sugarcane Committee, Handloom Board, Textile Control Board and Industrial Development Enquiry Committee, and also a Fellow of Calcutta University. In 1947, Hamidul Huq represented 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 ...

before Sir Cyril Radcliffe's Boundary Commission. Following partition in 1947, Hamidul Huq moved with his family to Dhaka,

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 ...

. Hamidul Huq started ''The Pakistan Observer'' on 11 March 1949. He was elected to the Pakistan Constitutional Assembly and was also a member of the

East Bengal Legislative Assembly The East Pakistan Provincial Assembly, known as the East Bengal Legislative Assembly between 1947 and 1955, was the provincial legislature of East Pakistan between 1947 and 1971. It was known as the East Bengal Assembly from 1947 to 1955 when the ...

, during which time he served as the Minister for Finance, Commerce, Labour & Industries (1947–49). Subsequently, Hamidul was elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan in 1955 as a leader 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 ...

and served as the fourth

Foreign Minister of Pakistan The Minister of Foreign Affairs (or simply the Foreign Minister) is the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Pakistan), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Pakistan. The minister is responsible for overseeing the federal governmen ...

(1955–56). Hamidul Huq participated in the Round Table Conference of Pakistani government and opposition leaders in

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

in 1969. He moved to West Pakistan shortly before the

Independence of Bangladesh Independence of Bangladesh was declared on 26 March 1971, celebrated as Independence Day, from Pakistan. The Independence Day of Bangladesh is celebrated on 26 March when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared the Independence of Bangladesh. The Bangladesh ...

and in 1972, the Government of Bangladesh cancelled his citizenship. He was allowed to return to Bangladesh in 1978 by the Bangladeshi Government led by

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' ...

Personal life

Hamidul Huq was married to Halima Banu. He died in Dhaka on 21 January 1992.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Choudhury, Hamidul Huq 1901 births 1992 deaths Scottish Church Collegiate School alumni University of Calcutta alumni Pakistani MNAs 1955–1958 Pakistani MNAs 1947–1954 Foreign Ministers of Pakistan Pakistani emigrants to Bangladesh Members of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan