Sen, Rangalal
Sen, Rangalal (1933-2014) National professor, academician and author. Rangalal Sen was born on 24 September 1933 at Troilokkhobijoy of Kamalpur village in Moulvibazar district. He was the son of Giribala Sen and Raman Chandra Sen. He was the second among his four brothers and two sisters.
Rangalal Sen built his own career by overcoming many setbacks and obstacles. At a slightly older age, he was admitted as a student of Sociology to the University of Dhaka and he completed his graduation in 1962 and post-graduation in 1963. He was the first student in the Department to obtain first class in his post-graduation degree. He obtained his PhD from the University of Sussex in England in 1977. His PhD dissertation ‘Political Elites in Bangladesh’ was acclaimed internationally.
Rangalal Sen was associated with progressive politics since his student life. He was a member of the Student Union. He was the leading member of the Communist Party of Bangladesh. In 1991, he was elected a member of the Control Commission and President of the Ramana Thana Committee at the 5th Congress of the Party. He took relentless efforts to maintain the unity of the party after the collapse of the socialist system. The party split in June 1993 when abolitionists left the party. He did not attach himself to any section after the split. But he was always firmly inclined to his ideology.
In 1966, Rangalal Sen joined Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) as a lecturer. The following year, he joined the Department of Sociology at the University of Dhaka. He was also the Provost of Jagannath Hall, and member of the University Senate. He retired from the faculty position in 1993. He also served in important positions of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh and Bangladesh Itihas Parishad. In 2011, the Government of Bangladesh honoured him as National Professor for his outstanding contributions to academia.
Rangalal Sen penned 23 books in English and Bengali in total. His notable works are Bangladesher Samajik Storbinnash (1985), Political Elites in Bangladesh (1986), Somajkathamo, Pujibadh o Somajtontro (1997), Bangladesh o Dhaka Biswabiddyalay (2003), Praromvik Somajbiggan (2003), and Civil Society, Rashtro o Onnanya (2006).
Rangalal Sen died on 10 February 2014. He left behind his wife Kamala Sen, two daughters and a son. [Gobinda Chakraborty]
