Kazi Zafar Ahmed

Kazi Zafar Ahmad
কাজী জাফর আহমেদ
Ahmed in 2013
8th Prime Minister of Bangladesh
In office
12 August 1989 – 6 December 1990
PresidentHussain Mohammad Ershad
DeputyShah Moazzem Hossain
Preceded byMoudud Ahmed
Succeeded byKhaleda Zia
6th Deputy Prime Minister of Bangladesh
In office
27 March 1988 – 12 August 1989
PresidentHossain Mohammad Ershad
Prime MinisterMoudud Ahmed
Preceded byMoudud Ahmed
Succeeded byPosition Abolished
In office
9 July 1986 – 10 August 1987
PresidentHossain Mohammad Ershad
Prime MinisterMizanur Rahman Chowdhury
Preceded byJamal Uddin Ahmad
Succeeded byShah Moazzem Hossain
6th Leader of the House
In office
12 August 1989 – 6 December 1990
Preceded byMoudud Ahmed
Succeeded byKhaleda Zia
Minister of Education
In office
2 May 1990 – 6 December 1990
Preceded bySheikh Shahidul Islam
Succeeded byZillur Rahman Siddiqui
In office
4 July 1978 – 11 October 1978
Preceded bySyed Ali Ahsan
Succeeded byAbdul Baten
Minister of Information and Broadcasting
In office
10 December 1988 – 2 May 1990
Preceded byMahbubur Rahman
Succeeded byMizanur Rahman Shelley
Minister of Commerce
In office
25 May 1986 – 31 December 1986
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byMohammad Abdul Munim
In office
30 July 1985 – 23 March 1986
Preceded bySultan Mahmud
Succeeded byHimself
Member of Parliament
In office
12 September 1991 – 24 November 1995
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byShamsuddin Ahmed
ConstituencyComilla-12
In office
3 March 1988 – 6 December 1990
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byHimself
ConstituencyComilla-12
In office
7 May 1986 – 3 March 1988
Preceded byAli Hossain Mia
Succeeded byHimself
ConstituencyComilla-12
Personal details
Born(1939-07-01)1 July 1939
Chauddagram, Bengal, British India
Died27 August 2015(2015-08-27) (aged 76)
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Political partyJatiya Party (1984–2013)
Jatiya Party (Zafar) (2013–2015)
Other political
affiliations		National Awami Party (NAP) (1972-1974)
United Peoples Party-UPP (1974-1986)
Alma materUniversity of Dhaka

Kazi Zafar Ahmad (/ˈkɑːzi ˈzɑːfɑːr ˈɑːxmɛd/ ⓘ; Bengali: কাজী জাফর আহমেদ; 1 July 1939[1] – 27 August 2015)[2] was a Bangladeshi politician of the Jatiya Party,[3] who was the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from 1989 to 1990.[4]

Early life

Ahmed was born in 1939,[5] in Kazi Bari, Cheora Chauddagram Upazila, Comilla, British India (now Bangladesh), the son of Cheora Kazi Bari.[6] He passed the entrance examination from Khulna Zilla School in the first division. He later completed his Higher Secondary education from Rajshahi Government College and went on to earn both his B.A. (Honours) and M.A. degrees in History from the University of Dhaka.[7] Although he completed coursework for an MA in International Relations and an LLB, he could not sit for the final examinations as he was imprisoned.[8]

Political career

Ahmed was a Maoist, From 1962 to 1963, he served as the General Secretary of the East Pakistan Chattra Union. In 1966, he joined the Maoist Communist Party and became a labour leader, mainly concentrating in organising the workers in Tongi industrial area.[5] During the Bangladesh war of independence in 1971, he worked in favour of Mujibnagar government.

National Awami Party

After independence, he joined the National Awami Party of Maulana Bhashani and became its Secretary General. He supported the ideology of Islamic socialism by Maulana Bhashani.[9] He declared that he would form a responsible opposition party. Later he formed the United Peoples' Party (UPP) in 1974 with Captain Abdul Halim Chowdhury.[5] He worked with the People's Democratic Party under President Ziaur Rahman after he assumed the presidency through a referendum.[5] Ahmed became Minister of Education.[5]

Jatiya Party

Ahmed also played a leading role in the anti-military rule movement against President Hussain Muhammad Ershad. But the period since 1975 in Bangladesh witnessed realignment of politics and leaders leaving their old parties and joining new ones. Ahmed dissolved his UPP and joined President Ershad's Jatiya Party.[10] On 3 July 1985, he was made a Minister in the cabinet of President Ershad.[11] Ershad on 3 March 1988 made Ahmed the deputy prime minister under Prime Minister Moudud Ahmed.[10] He defended the decision of Ershad to make Islam the state religion of Bangladesh as move against fundamentalism on 6 June 1988.[12] He served in the Ershad Government as Minister of Commerce from 1986 to 1989.[13] In August 1989, he was appointed prime minister replacing Moudud Ahmed who was made vice-president.[14] He served as the prime minister from August 1989 to 6 December 1990.[13] He fled to India after Ershad resigned from power.[13] He became known as Sugar Zafar for his role in the theft of a sugar shipment.[15] Ahmed criticised Ershad for joining the Bangladesh Awami League government in 1997 and created his own party called Jatiya Dal,[16] which joined the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Ershad was imprisoned since he lost power and was freed in 1996 after Bangladesh Awami League came to power.[17]

Ahmed was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by a Dhaka court in November 1999 on corruption charges related to the misappropriation of funds meant for an orphanage.[15][13] He moved to Australia and successfully applied for asylum.[13] In Australia he was able to access government disability pension for the treatment of his kidney.[15] John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia, called an inquiry into how Ahmed was able to secure asylum.[15]

Ahmed competed in the 2008 Bangladeshi general election from Comilla-11.[18] Ahmed, the presidium member of Jatiya Party, criticised Ershad for agreeing to join the 2014 Bangladesh election organised by Bangladesh Awami League-led coalition government.[19] On 5 May 2013, he went on the stage at a Hefajat-e Islam rally in Motijheel.[20]

Jatiya Party (Zafar)

In 2013, amid internal conflict over joining the interim government ahead of the 2014 Bangladeshi general election, he was suspended from Jatiya Party by Ershad and a few hours later, Ahmed tried to expel Ershad from the Jatiya Party,[21] after which he formed his own faction of Jatiya Party.[22] Golam Moshi joined the Ahmed faction of Jatiya Party.[23] In January 2014, he joined the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led 20-party alliance with his faction of Jatiya Party.[2][22]

Personal life

Ahmed was married to Momtaz Begum. They had three daughters, Kazi Joya Ahmed, Kazi Sonia Ahmed, and Kazi Rona Ahmed.[24] In 1999–2000, he served as a visiting professor at the University of Western Sydney, where he taught South Asian subcontinental politics.[25]

Death

Ahmed died on 27 August 2015 in United Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh.[5]

References

  1. ^ সর্বশেষ খবর. Jugantor (in Bengali).
  2. ^ a b "Jatiya Party leader Kazi Zafar passes away". The Daily Star. 27 August 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Kazi Zafar Ahmed passes away". Banglanews24.com. 26 August 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  4. ^ "Kazi Zafar Ahmed passes away". Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha. Archived from the original on 16 February 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e f "Jatiya Party faction leader Kazi Zafar Ahmed dies at the age of 76". bdnews24.com. 27 August 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Kazi Zafar's birthday today". The New Nation. 1 July 2008.
  7. ^ "এক নজরে কাজী জাফর". Jagonews24.com (in Bengali). 27 August 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  8. ^ "আমি বৃহস্পতিবার গ্রামের বাড়ি আসছি: কাজী জাফর". Bangla Tribune (in Bengali). Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  9. ^ "The declining left - Bangladesh expects more". The Daily Star. 6 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  10. ^ a b Rahman, Syedur (2010). Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810874534.
  11. ^ "Around the World; Bangladesh Appoints 7 Ministers to Cabinet". The New York Times. AP Archive. 4 July 1985. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  12. ^ Mutalib, Hussin; Hashmi, Taj ul-Islam (2016). Islam, Muslims and the Modern State: Case-Studies of Muslims in Thirteen Countries. Springer. p. 116. ISBN 9781349142088.
  13. ^ a b c d e "Safe haven here for corrupt ex-Bangladeshi PM". The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 June 2003. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
  14. ^ Preston, Ian (2005) [First published 2001]. A Political Chronology of Central, South and East Asia. Europa Publications. p. 22. ISBN 9781857431148.
  15. ^ a b c d "Bangladesh ex-PM in refugee row". BBC News. 13 June 2003. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
  16. ^ Banks, Arthur S.; Day, Alan J.; Muller, Thomas C. (2016). Political Handbook of the World 1998. Springer. p. 75. ISBN 9781349149513.
  17. ^ Riaz, Ali (2016). Bangladesh: A Political History since Independence. I.B.Tauris. pp. 171–172. ISBN 978-1-78076-741-3.
  18. ^ "EC in deep soup as court clears more JS polls candidates". The Daily Star. 19 December 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  19. ^ "Ershad back-flips". The Daily Star. 12 April 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  20. ^ "Aim was to oust govt". The Daily Star. 22 May 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  21. ^ Rahman, Syedur (2010). Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh. Scarecrow Press. pp. ix. ISBN 9780810874534.
  22. ^ a b "Kazi Zafar passes away". Prothom Alo. 27 August 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  23. ^ "Govt names Raushon's political secretary Golam Moshi Ambassador to Saudi Arabia". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  24. ^ "Former prime minister Kazi Zafar Ahmed laid to rest". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  25. ^ "কাজী জাফর আর নেই". Risingbd (in Bengali). Retrieved 10 June 2025.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.