Abdus Salam (27 November 1925 — 7 April 1952) was a demonstrator who died during the Bengali Language Movement demonstrations which took place in the erstwhile

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 ...

(currently Bangladesh), Pakistan in 1952. He is considered a martyr in Bangladesh.

Early life

Salam was born on 27 November 1925 in Laxmanpur (renamed 'Salam Nagar'), Matubhuiyan, Daganbhuiyan, Feni,

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 ...

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 him ...

. He studied in Krishnarampur Primary School, then at Matubhuiyan Kalimullah Minor School. He then joined the Daganbhuiyan Kemal Atatürk High School but dropped out at class 10 because of financial constraints.

Career

Salam went to

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

where he stayed with his cousin and her husband who worked in the

Port of Kolkata Port of Kolkata or Kolkata Port, officially known as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust (formerly Kolkata Port Trust), is the only riverine major port of India, located in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, around from the sea. It is the olde ...

. Salam was able to get a job in the port. In 1947 he moved to

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 i ...

and got a job at the department of industries as cleric record keeper. He received a place to stay in the government housing Palasi Barrack at

Azimpur Azimpur ( bn, আজিমপুর) is an old region in the old part of Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh. The region is named after Shahzada Azam, son of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Other accounts attribute the name to Azim-us-Shaan, the Nayeb-e-Nazim ...

Bengali language movement

On 21 February 1952, the students in Dhaka defied

Section 144 Unlawful assembly is a legal term to describe a group of people with the mutual intent of deliberate disturbance of the peace. If the group is about to start an act of disturbance, it is termed a rout; if the disturbance is commenced, it is then ter ...

(curfew) and bought out rallies in support of making Bengali a state language of Pakistan. The processions was joined by other members of public beside students. The police fired on the procession killing a number of protesters and wounding others. Salam was in the procession and was shot. He was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where he died from his injuries on 7 April 1952. He was buried in Azimpur graveyard. The location of his grave has since been lost.

Legacy

Salam was awarded

Ekushey Padak Ekushey Padak ( bn, একুশে পদক; lit. "Twentyfirst Award") is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of the martyrs of the Bengali Language Movement of 1952. The award is given to recognize contribut ...

in 2000 by the government of Bangladesh. The organisation Bhasha-Shahid Abdus Salam Smriti Parishad was formed to preserve his memory. His village, Laxmanpur, was renamed Salam Nagar by the villagers in 2000. The government of Bangladesh officially recognised the name in 2009. Language Martyr Salam Auditorium was built in Daganbhuiyan Upazila. Feni District Stadium was renamed Language Martyr Salam Stadium. Language Martyr Salam Community Centre was built in Feni. In 2008 government of Bangladesh built Language Martyr Abdus Salam Library and Memorial Museum near his village school. He has been immortalised in poetry of Shamsur Rahman,

Sufia Kamal Begum Sufia Kamal (20 June 1911 – 20 November 1999) was a Bangladeshi poet, feminist leader, and political activist. She took part in the Bengali nationalist movement of the 1950s and civil society leader in independent Bangladesh. She led fe ...

, and Belal Mohammad, etc. He was awarded the

Independence Day Award The Independence Day Award ( bn, স্বাধীনতা পদক), also termed Independence Award ( bn, স্বাধীনতা পুরস্কার), Swadhinata Padak, and Swadhinata Puroskar, is the highest state award given by t ...

in 2016.

Early life

Career

Bengali language movement

Legacy

References

Further reading