Mufazzal Haider Chaudhury (22 July 1926 – 14 December 1971) was a prominent Bengali essayist, prized scholar of Bengali literature, educator and linguist of the Bengali language.

Early life and education

Born in Khalishpur village, 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 ...

East Bengal ur, , common_name = East Bengal , status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan , p1 = Bengal Presidency , flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg , s1 = East ...

to Bazlur Rahman Chaudhury and Mahfuza Khatun, Chaudhury lost his father when he was nine. Facing financial difficulties, his mother arranged for his education at the Ahmediya High English School, from where he passed his matriculation examination securing fourth place under 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 ...

. After passing his intermediate from the

Dhaka College Dhaka College ( bn, ঢাকা কলেজ also known as DC) is the oldest secular educational institution of Bangladesh located in Dhaka. It offers higher secondary education ( HSC). It has Honours and Masters programs as well which are aff ...

, he went to study Bengali honors at the

Scottish Church College Scottish Church College is a college affiliated by Calcutta University, India. It offers selective co-educational undergraduate and postgraduate studies and is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in A ...

, in Kolkata. Later he moved to the

Visva-Bharati University Visva-Bharati () is a public central university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which means the communion of the w ...

, where he studied Bengali under the syllabus of the University of Calcutta, and passed his honors as a non-collegiate student in 1946. He made history by becoming the first Muslim to stand first class first in the BA (honors) examination from the Bengali department of Calcutta University, that too with record marks and a gold medal. He was awarded 'Sahitya Bharati' by the Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan. He topped his class in the master's examination in Shantiniketan.

Career

Chaudhury joined the

Pakistan Radio Radio Pakistan serves as the national public broadcaster for radio in Pakistan. Although some local stations predate Radio Pakistan's founding, it is the oldest existing broadcasting network in Pakistan. The network was established on 14 August ...

in Dhaka in 1949, and was a lecturer at

Jagannath College Jagannath University (JnU) ( bn, জগন্নাথ বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় ''Jagannātha biśbabidyālaẏa'', University Acrostic : জবি or JnU) is a state-funded public university at 9–10, Chittaranjan Avenue in Sa ...

before becoming a teacher at the Department of Bengali 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 ...

having actually to sit for another master's exam because DU wouldn't accept his Bishwabharati degree and again coming first in his class, in 1953, in Bengali from the

. He joined DU in 1955. In 1957, he joined the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...

to study linguistics for two years. His research on the works and the philosophy of

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

was felicitated and in 1970, he became an external examiner for Bengali at the University of Dhaka.

Death

Chaudhury was one of the leading Bengali intellectuals who were killed by collaborators of

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

on 14 December, two days before the end of 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 ...

. On 14 December, which is observed as

Martyred Intellectuals Day Martyred Intellectuals Day ( bn, শহীদ বুদ্ধিজীবী দিবস, Shaheed Buddhijibi Dibôsh) is observed on 14 December in Bangladesh to commemorate those intellectuals who were killed by Pakistani forces and their coll ...

, a group of

Al-Badr Al Badr is a village in Mecca Province, in western Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making ...

people took away the eminent intellectual from his house. His wife, Dolly Chaudhury, recognized one of the Al-Badr militants when the cover that hid the assassin's face was pulled by her husband. The person was

Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin ( bn, চৌধুরী মঈনুদ্দীন; born 27 November 1948), is a war criminal convicted for the killing of Bengali intellectuals in collaboration with the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberati ...

. On 3 November 2013,

, a Muslim leader based in London, and

Ashrafuz Zaman Khan Ashrafuz Zaman Khan ( bn, আশরাফুজ্জামান খান, ur, ; born February 28, 1948) is one of the convicted masterminds of 1971 killing of Bengali intellectuals. In 1971, he was a member of the Central Committee of the I ...

, based in the US, were sentenced in absentia after the court found that they were involved in the abduction and murders of 18 people – nine Dhaka University teachers including Chaudhury, six journalists, and three physicians – in December 1971.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaudhury, Mufazzal Haider 1926 births 1971 deaths People from Begumganj Upazila Scottish Church College alumni Dhaka College alumni University of Calcutta alumni University of Dhaka alumni Academic staff of the University of Dhaka Bangladeshi essayists Bangladeshi murder victims People murdered in Bangladesh People killed in the Bangladesh Liberation War 20th-century essayists Recipients of the Independence Day Award Bangladeshi textbook writers

Early life and education

Career

Death

See also

References