Nurul Alam Chowdhury (21 May 1945 – 27 January 2019) 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, diplomat and freedom fighter who was elected twice as MP of Chittagong-4 in

Jatiya Sangsad The Jatiya Sangsad ( bn, জাতীয় সংসদ, lit=National Parliament, translit=Jatiyô Sôngsôd), often referred to simply as the ''Sangsad'' or JS and also known as the House of the Nation, is the supreme legislative body of ...

. He was also a former Bangladeshi Ambassador to Oman, and director of

Rupali Bank Rupali Bank ( bn, রূপালী ব্যাংক) is a state owned commercial bank in Bangladesh. Its headquarters is in 34 Dilkusha, Dhaka. Kazi Sanaul Haque is the chairman of the bank. Mohammad Jahangir is the managing director of the ...

Early life and education

Nurul Alam Chowdhury was born on 21 May 1945 in a village of

Fatikchhari Upazila Fatikchari( bn, ফটিকছড়ি, Fôṭikchhôṛi) is an upazila of Chattogram District in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh. History The Fatikchhari Jami al-Uloom Fazil Madrasa and the Jamia Arabia Nasirul Islam Madrasa were founded i ...

Chittagong District Chittagong District, renamed the Chattogram District, is a district located in the south-eastern region of Bangladesh. It is a part of the Chattogram Division. The port city of Chattogram, which is the second largest city in Bangladesh, is ...

, Gopalghata to Matiur Rahman Chowdhury and Waijunnesa Chowdhury. He received his secondary education at Chittagong Muslim High School and

Chittagong College Chittagong College is a government college in Chittagong, Bangladesh. It is the second college established in Bangladesh after Dhaka College. It offers higher secondary education (HSC), bachelor's degree and master's degree. History Having begun ...

, where he was inducted into politics for the first time. He graduated from

Chittagong University The University of Chittagong ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়, caṭṭagram bishwabidyalay) is a public research university with multidisciplinary faculties situated across a 1754-acres hilly landmas ...

in history and received his Master's from the same university in 1969; he was part of the first group of post-graduate students. He was instrumental in establishing the university's branch of East Pakistan Chhatra League and was its first president.

Politics

Chowdhury rendered voluntary services at Fatehabad College for some time, before becoming a full-fledged politician. After being arrested for partaking in a protest against Hamoodur Rahman Education Commission, he spent some time in jail. He was thereafter inducted as the vice-chief of the Chattagram Awami League volunteer unit, wherein he played an integral role in building public opinion around their political goals. Pursuant to the

7 March Speech of Bangabandhu The 7 March Speech of Bangabandhu was a public speech given by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Founding Father of Bangladesh on 7 March 1971 at the Ramna Race Course (now Suhrawardy Udyan) in Dhaka to a gathering of over two million (2,000000) peop ...

, he helped in the launching of a mass-scale civil disobedience movement and took active part in blockades and demonstrations. As Pakistan responded with force to stop the insurgency, he joined the

Liberation War of Bangladesh 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 armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali n ...

and after receiving training from Bagafa Camp in

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 ...

was entrusted with the responsibilities of running a youth-refugee camp in

Agartala Agartala () is the capital city of the Indian state of Tripura, and is one of the largest cities in northeast India. The city is governed by the Agartala Municipal Corporation. The city is the seat of the Government of Tripura. It is located on ...

. After the end of the war that led to the independence of Bangladesh, he was selected for government service having been successful in the BCS Examination. Despite his success, Chowdhury decided to stay in politics, on the personal advice of

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengali politi ...

. He was elected as MP of Chittagong-4 at the age of 27 in 1973. He was the youngest member in the 1st Jatiya Sangsad. For protesting against the

Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman The first president of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and most of his family were killed during the early hours of 15 August 1975 by a group of young Bangladesh Army personnel who invaded his Bangabandhu Memorial Museum, Dhanmondi 32 resi ...

he was sent to jail in 1975. He was elected again as MP of Chittagong-4. He was appointed a Director of

in 1997. He was also appointed Bangladeshi Ambassador to Oman in 2010. He was the Chairman of Chittagong University Registered Graduate Forum. Chowdhury affiliated with other organizations such as the

Bangladesh Tea Board The Bangladesh Tea Board or BTB, an autonomous body responsible for creating laws regarding tea production, controlling and encouraging the production of tea and is located in Nasirabad, Chittagong, Bangladesh. It is under the Ministry of Commer ...

Bangladesh Red Crescent Society The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (also abbreviated as BDRCS) is a humanitarian organization and auxiliary to the Government of Bangladesh. The organization was established in 1973 as the Bangladesh Red Cross Society through the Presidents Orde ...

, Chittagong Association of Dhaka, Family Planning Commission and others.

Personal life

Nurul Alam Chowdhury was married to Rosy Alam. They had one daughter and two sons.

Death

Chowdhury died on 27 January 2019 at the age of 73, in Parkview Hospital,

Chittagong Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chowdhury, Nurul Alam 1945 births 1st Jatiya Sangsad members Awami League politicians 2019 deaths University of Chittagong alumni 3rd Jatiya Sangsad members People of the Bangladesh Liberation War Ambassadors of Bangladesh to Oman People from Fatikchhari Upazila