Anisuzzaman
Anisuzzaman (1937-2020) eminent educationist, writer, National Professor. known as Lighthouse of Bangladesh. Anisuzzaman was born on 18 February 1937 at Bashirhat in 24 Parganas of West Bengal. His father’s name was ATM Moazzem. He was a homeopathic doctor by profession. Although his mother Syeda Khatun was a housewife, she had the habit of writing. Anisuzzaman’s education began at Park Circus High School in Kolkata. When he was in seventh grade, his family moved to Khulna in East Pakistan following 1947 partition. He passed class VIII from Khulna Zila School. Then his family moved to Dhaka. Anisuzzaman Matriculated from Nawabpur Priyanath School, passed Intermediate from Jagannath College in 1953, BA (Honors) in Bengali from Dhaka University in 1956 and MA in first class with first position the following year. He joined Dhaka University as a Lecturer in 1959. In 1962, he obtained his PhD degree from Dhaka University on ‘Bengali Muslim Thought in Bengali Literature during the British Period: 1757-1858’. In 1965, he did post-doctoral research at the University of Chicago. His research topic was ‘Cultural History of Bengal in the Nineteenth Century: Young Bengal and Contemporary time’. In 1969, he joined Chittagong University as Reader (Associate Professor). Many years after independence, he returned to Dhaka University in 1985. When the Liberation War started in 1971, he went to India along with some of his colleagues in April. In Calcutta, he actively worked for the independence of Bangladesh, while under his leadership, the ‘Bangladesh Teachers Association’ was formed. He accepted the responsibility of the general secretary of this organization. The news of the genocide in Bangladesh created a stir among the teaching community of West Bengal. On 3 April, the ‘Calcutta University Bangladesh Teachers Aid Society’ was formed under the leadership of Professor Satyendranath Sen, Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University. Anisuzzaman played an important role in this initiative.
He was a blatant critic of Bangladesh’s multifaceted education system, which divides the students of Bangladesh into different streams. He believed that such an educational system was the biggest impediment to our national development.
His notable research works include ‘Muslim Manas and Bengali Literature’ (1964), ‘Muslim Bangla Periodical’ (1969, ‘Factory Correspondence and other Bengali Documents in the Indian Official Library and Records’ (1981), ‘Swaruper Sondhane’ (1976), ‘Athara Shataker Bangla Chitthi’ (1983), ‘Rabindrnath’ (1968), ‘Cultural Pluralism’ (1991), ‘Creativity, Reality and Identity’ (1991), ‘Identity, Religion and Recent History’ (1995), and two widely acclaimed memoirs ‘Kalnirobodhi’ (2003) and ‘Bipulaprithibi’ (2015).
Dr. Anisuzzaman was an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Bengali in Dhaka University. He participated in the language movement (1952), mass uprising of 1969 and the great Liberation War of 1971. He was a member of the Planning Commission of the first Government of Bangladesh formed during the War of Liberation. After the independence of Bangladesh, he was a member of Dr. Qudrat-e-Khuda Education Commission formed on 26 July 1972. In 1974-75, he carried on research at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, as a Commonwealth Academy Staff Fellow. From 1978 to 1983, he participated in research projects at the United Nations University. On the 19th of June 2018, Bangladesh Government appointed him National Professor. He was a visiting fellow at Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies (Calcutta), University of Paris and North Carolina State University. He also served as the President of Nazrul Institute and Bangla Academy.
In 1964, his PhD thesis was published as a book titled ‘Muslim-Manas and Bangla Literature’. Anisuzzaman was tasked with preparing the Bengali version of the Bangladesh Constitution, which was adopted in 1972, embodying the thoughts and ideals of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the spirit of the Liberation War.
Professor Anisuzzaman was secular in thought and behaviour. Throughout his life, he repudiated the role of religion in state life and public affairs. Anisuzzaman was entrusted with the task of writing the Bengali version of the first five-year plan of Bangladesh. The first budget of Bangladesh was drafted in English. Professor Anisuzzaman prepared the Bengali version of the same at the behest of Finance Minister Tajuddin Ahmad.
As he talked about humanism, he also equally stressed the building of a culturally pluralistic society. He was an active supporter of women’s rights and freedom. After his retirement, he became, first an adjunct professor at Dhaka University, next an emeritus professor, as mentioned earlier.
Anisuzzaman was awarded with many government and private medals in recognition of his contributions. In 1985, he received ‘Ekushey Padak’, the second highest civilian award bestowed upon by the government for his contribution to education. In 2014, he received the ‘Paddya Bhushan’, the third highest civilian award, from the government of India, for his contribution to education and literature. In 2015, he received the highest civilian award `Swadhinata Padak’ from the Government of Bangladesh.
On 14 May, 2020, Anisuzzaman succumbed to covid-19 at the age of 84. [Sabbir Ahmed]
Reference Anisuzzaman, Bipula Prithibi, (Prothoma 2015); Jalal Firoj, Sangbidhan O Anisuzzaman, (Bangla Adademy 2021).
