Mohammad Abdul Haque
Mohammad Abdul Haque was a Bangladeshi bureaucrat, author and government minister.
His granddaughter is the celebrated Australian-Canadian writer, poet, artist, and cultural critic, Fariha Róisín.
Early life and education
Haque was born on 1 January 1918 in the village of Kamalpur in Zakiganj, Sylhet District, Assam Province, British Raj. He was the son of Mohammad Sabzan Ali and Sakina Khatun. He graduated from Murari Chand College in 1942 with a Bachelor of Arts in English.Career
Haque passed the Assam Public Service Commission examination in 1943 and was appointed to the police with the rank of deputy superintendent. He opted to join the Pakistan Police Service after the Partition of India in 1947. He served as the district superintendent of police of Dhaka District, Mymensingh District, Noakhali District, and Rangpur District. In 1959, he was awarded the President Police Medal. In 1960, he was made the additional inspector general of police. He was awarded the Tamgha-i-Pakistan in 1963. From 1965 to 1969, he served as the chairman of the Road Transport Corporation. He received the Sitara-i-Khidmat award from the government of Pakistan in 1969.Abdul Haque founded a hospital after retirement. His hospital served as a shelter for civilians during the Bangladesh Liberation War.
During this war, his daughter was abducted for three days and brutally treated. According to Haque's granddaughter, the writer Fariha Róisín, "When she was finally returned home, nobody believed what happened to her. So she drank a bottle of kerosene, at 16, and attempted suicide for the first time." Róisín discusses the impact of being raised by a deeply traumatized mother.
He joined politics in the 1970s and was elected to the Jatiya Sangsad in 1979 as an independent candidate. From 1985 to 1986, he served as the Minister of Land Administration and Land Reforms in the cabinet of President Hussain Muhammad Ershad. Although he served as the acting president of the Janadal Party from 1985 to 1986, he retired from politics in 1987. Abdul Haque received the Bhasani Medal and Sher-e-Bangla Medal award for his philanthropic contribution.
Works
Abdul Haque has authored several works including:- Rahugrasta Bangladesh
- Deshta Ki Rasatale Jabe
- Srishtir Sera Shoto Manob
- Daridrya Bimochan
- ''Yahya’s Master Plan''