Full Name: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman  ( শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান )
He is popularly known under the title of Bangabandhu.

 Date of Birth: 17 March 1920
Place of Birth: Tungipara, Bengal Presidency, British India
(now in Bangladesh)
Father: Sheikh Lutfur Rahman
Mother: Sheikh Sayera Khatun
 Date of Death:15 August 1975 (aged 55)
Place of Death: Dhaka, Bangladesh
Cause of Death: Assassination

 Gender: Male
Wife: Sheikh Fazilatunnesa
Nationality: Bangladeshi
Occupation: Political Leader
Signature: 



Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Bengali: শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান Sheikh Mujibur Rôhman; Urdu: مجيب الرحمن‎), (March 17, 1920 – August 15, 1975) was a Bengali nationalist politician, statesman and the independence leader of Bangladesh. He headed the Awami League, and served as the first President of Bangladesh and later its Prime Minister. 

His eldest daughter, Sheikh Hasina, is the present leader of the Awami League and the current Prime Minister of Bangladesh.

As a student political leader, Mujib rose in Bengali politics in East Pakistan as a charismatic and forceful orator. In the aftermath of the 1974 famine and amidst rising political agitation, he banned other political parties and most of the newspapers, except for four that were owned by the state. After the coup, the military established a government; in 1977 Ziaur Rahman became president.

Early life: Sheikh Mujib was born in Tungipara, a village in Gopalganj District in the province of Bengal in British India, to Sheikh Lutfur Rahman, a serestadar, an officer responsible for record-keeping at the Gopalganj civil court. During this period, Mujib worked actively for the League's cause of a separate Muslim state of Pakistan, and in 1946 he became general secretary of the Islamia College Students Union. On his return to what became known as East Pakistan, he enrolled in the University of Dhaka to study law and founded the East Pakistan Muslim Students' League. Mujib led the Muslim Students' League in organising strikes and protests and was arrested along with Khaleque Nawaz Khan and Shamsul Haque by police on March 11.

Early political career: In 1953, he was made the party's general secretary and elected to the East Bengal Legislative Assembly on a United Front coalition ticket in 1954. Serving briefly as the minister for agriculture during A. K. Fazlul Huq's government, Mujib was briefly arrested for organizing a protest of the central government's decision to dismiss the United Front ministry. The government proposed to dissolve the provinces in favour of an amalgamation of the western provinces of the Dominion of Pakistan in a plan called One Unit; at the same time, the central government would be strengthened. That year East Bengal was renamed East Pakistan as part of One Unit at the same time.

Leader of Pakistan: In these years, there was rising discontent in East Pakistan over the atrocities committed by the Pakistani Armed Forces against Bengalis and the neglect of the issues and needs of East Pakistan by the ruling regime. In 1966, Mujib proclaimed a 6-point plan titled Our Charter of Survival at a national conference of opposition political parties at Lahore, in which he demanded self-government and considerable political, economic and defence autonomy for East Pakistan in a Pakistani federation with a weak central government. Mujib's points catalysed public support across East Pakistan, launching what some historians have termed the 6-point movement — recognized as the definitive gambit for autonomy and rights of Bengalis in Pakistan. Mujib obtained the broad support of Bengalis, including the Hindu and other religious communities in East Pakistan. Widely known as the Agartala Conspiracy Case, Mujib and 34 Bengali military officers were accused by the government of colluding with Indian government agents in a scheme to divide Pakistan and threaten its unity, order and national security. On December 5, 1969, Mujib made a declaration at a public meeting held to observe the death anniversary of Suhrawardy that henceforth East Pakistan would be called "Bangladesh": "There was a time when all efforts were made to erase the word "Bangla" from this land and its map. Mujib was able to galvanise support throughout East Pakistan, which was home to a majority of the national population, thus making him one of the most powerful political figures in the Indian subcontinent.

1970 Elections and Independence: In the Pakistani general elections held in December 1970, the Awami League under Mujib's leadership won a massive majority in the provincial legislature, and all but two of East Pakistan's quota of seats in the new National Assembly, thus forming a clear majority. Bhutto threatened to boycott the assembly and oppose the government if Mujib was invited by Yahya Khan (then president of Pakistan) to form the next government and demanded the inclusion of the PPP. At the time neither Mujib nor the Awami League had explicitly advocated political independence for East Pakistan, but smaller nationalist groups were demanding independence for Bangladesh.

Liberation War, 1971: It was on March 7, 1971, that Mujib called for independence and asked the people to launch a major campaign of civil disobedience and organized armed resistance at a mass gathering of people held at the Race Course Ground in Dhaka. Following a last-ditch attempt to foster agreement, Yahya Khan declared martial law, banned the Awami League and ordered the army to arrest Mujib and other Bengali leaders and activists. Speaking on the radio even as the army began its crackdown, Mujib asked his fellows to create resistance against the Pakistani Army of occupation by a telegraph at midnight on March 26, 1971. Sheikh Mujib was arrested and taken to Pakistan after midnight via Tejgaon international airport on a PAF C-130 flight right under the noses of ATC Officer Squadron Leader Khaja, Senior Operations Officer Wing Commander Khademul Bashar and Director of Airport and Flight Security Squadron Leader M. Hamidullah Khan. The East Bengali army and police regiments soon revolted and League leaders formed a government in exile in Kolkata under Tajuddin Ahmad, a politician close to Mujib. Following Indian intervention in December 1971, the Pakistani army surrendered to the joint force of Bengali Mukti Bahini and the Indian Army, and the League leadership created a government in Dhaka. Delhi was given a festive look as Mujib and Indira addressed a huge crowd where he publicly expressed his gratitude to Indira Gandhi and the people of India. From New Delhi, Sheikh Mujib flew back to Dhaka on the RAF jet where he was received by a massive and emotional sea of people at Tejgaon Airport.

Governing Bangladesh: After Bangladesh achieved recognition from major countries, Mujib helped Bangladesh enter the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement. He signed a treaty of friendship with India, which pledged extensive economic and humanitarian assistance and began training Bangladesh's security forces and government personnel. Although the state was committed to secularism, Mujib soon began moving closer to political Islam through state policies as well as personal conduct.
He revived the Islamic Academy (which had been banned in 1972 for suspected collusion with Pakistani forces) and banned the production and sale of alcohol and banned the practice of gambling, which had been one of the major demands of Islamic groups. Mujib sought Bangladesh's membership in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and the Islamic Development Bank and made a significant trip to Lahore in 1974 to attend the OIC summit, which helped repair relations with Pakistan to an extent. The Bangladesh famine of 1974 is a major source of discontent against Mujib's government.

BAKSAL: Intense criticism of Mujib arose over a lack of political leadership, a flawed pricing policy, and rising inflation amidst heavy losses suffered by the nationalised industries. The 1974 famine had personally shocked Mujib and profoundly affected his views on governance, while political unrest gave rise to increasing violence. On January 25, 1975, Mujib declared a state of emergency and his political supporters approved a constitutional amendment banning all opposition political parties. Using government forces and a militia of supporters called the Jatiyo Rakkhi Bahini, Mujib oversaw the arrest of opposition activists and strict control of political activities across the country.

Assassination: The coup was planned by disgruntled Awami League colleagues and military officers, which included Mujib's colleague and former confidanté Khondaker Mushtaq Ahmad, who became his immediate successor. Declaring himself President in 1978, Ziaur Rahman signed the Indemnity Ordinance, giving immunity from prosecution to the men who plotted Mujib's assassination and overthrow.

Criticism and legacy: During Mujib's tenure as leader, Muslim religious leaders and some politicians intensely criticized Mujib's adoption of state secularism. As a founding father of the nation, Mujib is the paramount icon of the Awami League; it continues to support socialism in government.