The Majumder–Zia family (), or simply the Zia family (), is one of the two most prominent Bangladeshi

political families A political family (also referred to as political dynasty) is a family in which multiple members are involved in politics — particularly electoral politics. Members may be related by blood or marriage; often several generations or multiple sibl ...

, alongside the Sheikh family, it leads the

Bangladesh Nationalist Party The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (), popularly abbreviated as BNP (), is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. It was founded on 1 September 1978 by President of Bangladesh, President Ziaur Rahman, wit ...

. Members of the family include –

Ziaur Rahman Ziaur Rahman (19 January 193630 May 1981) was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the sixth president of Bangladesh from 1977 until Assassination of Ziaur Rahman, his assassination in 1981. One of the leading figures of t ...

served as army chief and later

President of Bangladesh President of Bangladesh (POB), officially the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is the head of state of Bangladesh and commander-in-chief of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The role of the president has changed three times since ...

and

Khaleda Zia Begum Khaleda Zia (born August–September 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the prime minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and the second fema ...

Prime Minister of Bangladesh The prime minister of Bangladesh (, : Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), officially prime minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (, : Gôṇôprôjātôntrī Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), is the head of government of the Ba ...

, while several others have been

members Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

of the parliament.

Background of the families

Mandals of Mahishaban

Kakar Mandal was the great-grandson of Muminuddin Mandal (d. 1840), a powerful leader and ''Mandal'' from the village of Mahishaban in Gabtali,

Bogra Bogra (), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, officially Bogura, is a city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in North Bengal, Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in te ...

. Muminuddin Mandal's influence was spread out across Gabtali, Sukhanpukur and other areas west of the

Jamuna River The Jamuna River () is one of the three main rivers of Bangladesh. The two other major rivers in Bangladesh are the Padma and the Meghna. The Jamuna is the lower stream of the Brahmaputra River, which originates in Tibet as Yarlung Tsangpo, ...

. *Kamaluddin Mandal (born 1854): He was the only son of Kakar Mandal. He was a '' moulvi'' and local educationist who served as the principal of Bagbari Minor School. He moved from Mahishaban to Bagbari after marrying Begum Meherunnisa. His wife's ancestors migrated from

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

to Balurghat, Ghoraghat during the

Mughal period The Mughal Empire was an early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of pre ...

, and moved to Bogra during the reign of Emperor

Aurangzeb Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...

. It was from this marriage that Kamaluddin Mandal inherited land from that landowning family in the village of Bagbari and moved there. #Mahmud Mandal: Skin merchant #Zahiruddin Mandal: Landlord #Mazhabuddin Mandal #Moazzam Hossain Mandal: Engineer. #Mansur Rahman Mandal (died 1966): chemist who specialised in paper and ink chemistry and worked for a government department at

Writers' Building The Writers' Buildings or Mahakaran, often shortened to just Writers, was the official secretariat building of the Government of West Bengal, state government of West Bengal in Kolkata, India. The 150-metre long building covers the entire northe ...

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

. He married Jahanara Khatun ##Rezaur Rahman Mandal, marine engineer ##Mizanur Rahman Mandal, economist ##

(see below) ##Ahmad Kamal Mandal (d. 2017) ##Khalilur Rahman Mandal (d. 2014): He was a pharmacist based in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

and had three daughters. #Major Muhammad Mamtazur Rahman Mandal: Medical officer for

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

#Mahfuzur Rahman Mandal: Income tax practitioner #Fatema Khatun: Married an SDO under the Maharaja of Cooch Behar #Rahima Khatun: Married detective Muhammad Shamsuddin

Khan Majumdars of Fulgazi

*Murad Khan:

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

merchant who arrived to

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

in the 17th century, but later moved to Sripur in Fulgazi due to devastating floods in Chittagong He had four sons: Nahar Muhammad Khan, Tahir Muhammad Khan, Phul Muhammad Khan and Arif Muhammad Khan. #Phul Muhammad Khan (son of Murad Khan): He fought under Shamsher Ghazi against the

Twipra Kingdom The Twipra Kingdom (), anglicized as Tipperah, was one of the largest historical kingdoms of the Tripuri people in Northeast India. Legend A list of legendary Tripuri kings is given in the Rajmala chronicle, a 15th-century chronicle in B ...

, and gained the title of Ghazi. The area came to be known as Phulgazi, or Fulgazi, after him. #Nahar Muhammad Khan (son of Murad Khan): responsible for building a large

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

in his palace in 1701, To the west of this reservoir, the family built a three-domed mosque which is now known as the Sripur Jami Mosque and continues to be used today. The Maharaja of Tripura signed a peace treaty with Shamsher Gazi and his forces which included Nahar and Phulgazi. The treaty mentioned that Nahar received 80 ''droṇ'' of revenue-free land, 14

zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...

mouza In Bangladesh, Pakistan and parts of India, a mouza or mauza (also mouja) is a type of administrative district, corresponding to a specific land area within which there may be one or more settlements. Before the 20th century, the term referred to a ...

s and the title of

Majumdar Majumdar () is a native Bengali surname that is used by both the Bengali Hindu and Bengali Muslim community of Indian states of West Bengal, Assam and as well as of Bangladesh. Etymology and history The name literally translates to 'record keepe ...

. These 14 mouzas make up the modern-day Fulgazi Upazila #Azgar Ali Majumdar (eldest of the five sons of Nahar Muhammad Khan): had five sons named Aqamat Ali Majumdar, Hashmat Ali Majumdar, Bashrat Ali Majumdar, Salamat Ali Majumdar and Mafizul Islam Majumdar **Aqamat Ali Majumdar (son of Azgar Ali Majumdar): had no sons **Basharat Ali Majumdar (son of Azgar Ali Majumdar): was a father of two **Hashmat Ali Majumdar (son of Azgar Ali Majumdar): son: ***Mazharul Husayn Majumder (son of Hashmat Ali Majumdar): He was also known as Muzzammil Ali Majumdar and became a Sufi pir by the

sobriquet A sobriquet ( ) is a descriptive nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. A sobriquet is distinct from a pseudonym in that it is typically a familiar name used in place of a real name without the need for explanation; it may beco ...

of Pir Pagla Dervish (died November 1975) **Mafizul Ali Majumdar (son of Azgar Ali Majumdar): He died before marriage **Salamat Ali Majumdar (son of Azgar Ali Majumdar): He had five sons; most notably Iskandar Majumdar, Mokaddes Hossain Majumder and Zamshed Hossain Majumdar ***Iskandar Majumder (son of Salamat Ali Majumdar): tea-businessman who married Begum Taiyaba and migrated to

Dinajpur Dinajpur ( ) is a city and the district headquarters of Dinajpur district situated in Rangpur Division, Bangladesh. It was founded in 1786. It is located 413 km north-west of Dhaka. It is bounded on the north by Suihari, Katapara, Bangi ...

. He had three daughters and two sons. ****Selima Islam: She married M. Rafiqul Islam, was the former vice-chancellor of

Islamic University, Bangladesh Islamic University, Bangladesh (legally: Islamic University); (; ) commonly referred to as Islamic University, Kushtia (abbreviated as IU), is a public PhD granting research university in Kushtia, Bangladesh and the largest seat of higher educa ...

, professor of economics at the

University of Rajshahi The University of Rajshahi (), also known as Rajshahi University (RU), is a public research university located in Rajshahi, Bangladesh. It is the second oldest and third largest university in Bangladesh. The university's 59 departments are or ...

and treasurer of

Pundra University of Science and Technology Pundravardhana or Pundra kingdom (), was an ancient kingdom of Iron Age India located in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent with a territory that included parts of present-day Rajshahi and parts of Rangpur Division of Bangladesh a ...

***** Shahrin Islam Tuhin, was a former member of Parliament (1996) and son of Selima Islam and M. Rafiqul Islam. ***** Saiful Islam Duke retired Lieutenant Commander of Bangladesh Navy and son of Selima Islam and M. Rafiqul Islam. **** Khurshid Jahan (1939–2006), former Minister of Women and Children Affairs (2001–2006) **** Khaleda Khanam Putul (see below) **** Sayeed Iskander Majumdar (1953–2012), former parliamentarian (2001–2006) and founding chairman of Islamic TV ****Shamim Iskander Majumdar, politician 2. Zamshed Hossain Majumdar (son of Salamat Ali Majumdar), was a prominent businessman, Social and political leader in

Feni District Feni District () is a coastal Districts of Bangladesh, district situated in the south-east of Bangladesh, within Chittagong Division. One of Bangladesh's smallest districts, it is strategically located along the N1 (Bangladesh), Dhaka–Chittago ...

, had six sons and four daughters # Zakir Hossain Majumdar Chaad, martyr in 1971 war # Zahid Hossain Majumdar Nonaai, businessman and politician # Zohirul Quium Majumdar Nantu, Government job holder and founding chairman of Islamic TV. had two sons and a daughter

Members of the Majumder-Zia family

(

, 1979–1981; fighter and military administrator) *

Begum Khaleda Zia Begum Khaleda Zia (born August–September 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the prime minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and the second fema ...

(wife of Ziaur Rahman;

, 1991–1996 and 2001–2006), daughter of Taiyaba Majumder and Iskandar Majumder **

Tarique Rahman Tarique Rahman (born 20 November 1965), better known natively as Tarique Zia, is a Bangladeshi politician and businessman who has been the acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since February 2018. He is the eldest son of fo ...

(born 1965): eldest son of

and

and Senior Vice-Chairman of the

**Dr.

Zubaida Rahman Zubaida Rahman () is a Bangladeshi physician, and the wife of politician Tarique Rahman. Personal life ''Zubaida Khan'' was born on 18 May 1972 in Sylhet, she is the daughter of Rear Admiral Mahbub Ali Khan, Chief of the Naval Staff of Bangla ...

: wife of

and daughter of navy chief

Mahbub Ali Khan Mahbub Ali Khan (; 3 November 1934 – 6 August 1984) was a Bangladesh Navy rear admiral and the Chief of the Naval Staff (Bangladesh), chief of naval staff from 1979 until his death in 1984. He is known for his heroic actions for his country. ...

and Syeda Iqbal Mand Banu *** Zaima Rahman: only daughter of

and Dr.

** Arafat Rahman (1969–2015): youngest son of

and

and Former Chairman of the Development Committee of

Bangladesh Cricket Board The Bangladesh Cricket Board (; abbreviated as BCB), formerly known as Bangladesh Cricket Control Board, is the governing body of cricket in Bangladesh. It became an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1977, and a Lis ...

**Sharmila Sithi: wife of Arafat Rahman ***Zahia Rahman: eldest daughter of Arafat Rahman and Sharmila Sithi ***Zaifa Rahman: youngest daughter of Arafat Rahman and Sharmila Sithi.

Family tree

Family of Mandals of Mahishaban

Family of Ziaur Rahman

Family of Khan Majumdars of Fulgazi

References

Majumder–Zia family Political families of Bangladesh History of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party {{DEFAULTSORT:Majumder-Zia family