Mujibur Rahman, << MOO jee bur RAH mahn >> (1920-1975), became the first prime minister of Bangladesh in January 1972. In January 1975, Mujibur Rahman (known as Sheikh Mujib) took office as president of Bangladesh. Military leaders of the country overthrew Mujib’s government and assassinated him on Aug. 15, 1975.
Before his rise to national leadership, Mujib spent 25 years campaigning for self-government for East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). During that period, he was held as a political prisoner for a total of more than 10 years.
In 1970, the Awami League, the party headed by Mujib, won a majority of the seats in an assembly that was to write a new constitution for Pakistan. Mujib met with West Pakistani leaders to discuss the constitution. But the talks broke down, and fighting erupted in East Pakistan against occupying West Pakistani forces. The government imprisoned Mujib in West Pakistan. In December 1971, Bangladeshi guerrillas and the Indian army defeated West Pakistan, and Bangladesh gained independence. Mujib was released and returned home to a hero’s welcome and to the task of leading a new nation.
Mujib was born on March 17, 1920, in Tungipara, 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Dhaka. He graduated from Islamia College in Calcutta (now Kolkata) and studied law for a short time at Dhaka University. From 1996 to 2001, Mujib’s daughter Sheikh Hasina Wajed served as prime minister of Bangladesh. She became prime minister again in 2009.
See also Bangladesh (History); Hasina Wajed.
