Saifuddin Ahmed Manik was a Bangladeshi communist politician.

Early life

Manik was born on 24 June 1939 in Jalpaiguri,

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. After the Partition of India in 1947, his family moved to Gopibagh, Dhaka. He studied and graduated from

Muslim Government High School Dhaka Government Muslim High School ( bn, ঢাকা গভঃ মুসলিম হাই স্কুল) is a secondary school in Lakshmi Bazaar in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is one of the oldest schools in Dhaka. Notable alumni * Abdullah-Al-Mu ...

and

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 graduated from Dhaka University with a masters in political science. He was a founder of

Brothers Union Brothers Union is a football club based in Gopibag, Dhaka. The club was founded in 1949 and the regal business tycoon Kazi Ghiyasuddin Ahmed, better known as K. G. Ahmed served as the founder chairman of the club. At the beginning it was a well ...

and

Chhayanaut The Chhayanaut Sangeet Vidyatan ( bn, ছায়ানট) is an institution devoted to Bengali culture, founded in Bangladesh in 1961. As in the case of many similar organizations, it was established during Pakistani rule in Bangladesh to prom ...

. While studying in Dhaka University, he was the general secretary of Sangskriti Sangsad. He was involved with student politics and protested against President

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 ...

and government's Education Commission Report. In 1965, he served as the general secretary of East Pakistan Students Union.

Career

Manik was the president of the East Pakistan Students Union. He was one of the architects of Eleven Points Programme. He was a key leader of Sarbadaliya Chhatra Sangram Parishad which spearheaded the

1969 Mass uprising in East Pakistan The 1969 mass uprising in East Pakistan ( bn, ঊনসত্তরের গণঅভ্যুত্থান, lit=69’s Mass uprising) was a democratic political movement in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). The uprising consisted of a series of m ...

. Following the mass uprising, President Ayub Khan resigned and Manik decided to focus on trade union activities. He was elected president of the labor union at Latif Bawany Jute Mills. He created a pan-national trade union called

Bangladesh Trade Union Centre The Bangladesh Trade Union Centre (BTUC) ( bn, বাংলাদেশ ট্রেড ইউনিয়ন কেন্দ্র, Bānlādēśa ṭrēḍa i'uniẏana kēndra) is a national trade union federation in Bangladesh. It is affiliate ...

(TUC). He was elected the first general secretary of Bangladesh Trade Union Centre (TUC). Manik had fought in 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 ...

in a unit composed of left wing students. After the independence of Bangladesh, he joined the Communist Party of Bangladesh and was elected to the Central Secretariat of the party. In 1993, the Communist Party of Bangladesh divided into different parties and he helped organize a new party,

Gano Forum Gano Forum ( bn, গণফোরাম), literally ''People's Forum'', is a political party in Bangladesh. GF was formed through a split of the Awami League and the merger of civil society groups in 1992. The party is headed by one of its found ...

. In 1996, he became the general secretary of Gano Forum, a position he held till his death.

Personal life and death

Manik's younger brother Shahid Uddin Ahmed Selim was a professional footballer, who captained both

and the

Bangladesh national football team The Bangladesh national football team ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জাতীয় ফুটবল দল) is the national recognised football team of Bangladesh and is controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF). It is a membe ...

. Selim died from oral cancer on 5 January 2022, at the age of 69. Manik died on 3 February 2008 in Comfort Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh from lung cancer. 12122009 Saifuddin Ahmed Manik grave photo RanadipamBasu

12122009 Saifuddin Ahmed Manik grave photo RanadipamBasu

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manik 1939 births 2008 deaths People from Jalpaiguri district Bangladeshi communists Gano Forum politicians