Mannan, Abdul

Mannan, Abdul (1929-2005) lawyer, politician. Abdul Mannan was born on 7 October 1929 at village Katuli in Tangail district. He passed the matriculation examination in 1944 from Bindubashini Government Boys High School of Tangail, and intermediate examination from Karatia Sadat College in 1946. He obtained BCom (Hons) degree from Dhaka University in 1950 and MCom in 1951. He served as a Professor in Haraganga College of Munshiganj and Ananda Mohan College in Mymensingh. Later he joined the Dhaka Income Tax bar as an income tax adviser.

Abdul Mannan took active part in the language movement of 1952, the six-point movement and the mass upsurge of 1969. He was elected the president of Tangail sub-divisional Awami League in 1956, president of Tangail district unit of Awami League in 1969 and the publicity secretary of All Pakistan Awami League in the same year. He discharged the responsibility of the acting president of Awami League more than once. Abdul Mannan was elected a member of the Pakistan National Assembly in 1970. After the oath-taking of the Mujibnagar Government on 17 April 1971, Abdul Mannan served as the head of information, broadcasting and film division of the Bangladesh government in exile located at No. 9 Park Circus Avenue, Kolkata (Bangladesh Mission). Its efforts were directed at informing the outside world about the direction of armed struggle of the Bangalis, operations of the liberation forces and activities of Bangladesh government as well as creation of domestic and international public opinion in its favour. Mannan was also the chairman of the Board of Editors of the weekly Jai Bangla, an organ of the Mujibnagar government.

After the liberation, Abdul Mannan was included in the first cabinet of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman formed on 12 January 1972 and was in charge of the Ministry of Home Affairs. He was elected a member of the Jatiya Sangsad in 1973. He was included in the cabinet of Bangabandhu formed on 16 March 1973 in charge of the Ministry of Health and Family Planning. After the fourth amendment of the Constitution, new cabinet consisting of 17 members was formed on 26 January 1975 under the President Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and Abdul Mannan was appointed as the Health and Family Planning Minister. He was a member of the cabinet headed by Khondakar Mostaq Ahmad in 1975. He was the chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on local government, rural development and cooperatives in the seventh Jatiya Sangsad constituted in 1996.

Abdul Mannan was the president of Bangladesh Tax Lawyers; Association during 1977-86. He made valuable contributions towards the establishment of educational institutions, hospitals, Mahera Police Training Centre, Moulana Bhasani Science and Technology University, Tangail Mahfil (Tangail District Association) in Dhaka and the Wari Club. He died on 4 April 2005. [Md. Habibullah Bahar]