Badruddin Umar passes away
Badruddin Umar, a prominent writer,
historian, and political thinker, passed away in Dhaka this morning at the age
of 94.
"As Badruddin fell sick, he was taken to Bangladesh Specialised Hospital,
where he died around 10:05am," Foizul Hakim, general secretary of Gono
Mukti Council, told The Daily Star.
For more than six decades, Badruddin used his writing to
challenge authority and highlight the struggles of ordinary people. His
uncompromising commitment to truth and justice made him a symbol of integrity
and courage in Bangladesh's intellectual and political spheres.
Badruddin
served as president of the National Liberation Council and was a leading member
of the country's Anti-Imperialist and Anti-Fascist Committee.
For over forty years, he also edited the left-leaning magazine 'Sanskriti',
which became an influential platform for progressive thought.
In 1963,
Badruddin joined Rajshahi University, where he founded both the Department of
Political Science and the Department of Sociology.
He
resigned in 1968 to devote himself entirely to political activism, following
disagreements with the Pakistani government.
A prolific author, he wrote more than a hundred books and countless articles.
His works include "Sampradayikata" (Communalism), "Sanskritir
Sankat" (The Crisis of Culture), and "Sanskritik Sampradayikata"
(Cultural Communalism), which provoked strong opposition from the military and
civil authorities of East Pakistan.
Among his
most acclaimed contributions are his three-volume study "Purba Banglar
Bhasha Andolon o Tatkaleen Rajneeti" (The Language Movement in East Bengal
and Contemporary Politics) and his two-volume work "The Emergence of
Bangladesh", which remain central references in the nation's historical
discourse.