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61-836: The United Front was a coalition of political parties in East Bengal which contested and won Pakistan's first provincial general election to the East Bengal Legislative Assembly . The coalition consisted of the Awami Muslim League , the Krishak Praja Party , the Ganatantri Dal (Democratic Party) and Nizam-e-Islam . The coalition was led by four major Bengali populist leaders- A. K. Fazlul Huq , Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy and Maulana Bhashani The election resulted in

122-590: A crushing defeat for the Muslim League. Veteran student leader of East Pakistan Khaleque Nawaz Khan defeated sitting Prime Minister of East Pakistan Mr. Nurul Amin in Nandail Constituency of Mymensingh district and created history in political arena. Nurul Amin's crushing defeat to a 27 years old young Turk of United Front effectively eliminated the Muslim League from political landscape of the then East Pakistan with United Front parties securing

183-673: A formal annexation of the Mayu region . Two months later, the North Arakan Muslim League also asked Jinnah to annex the region. Jinnah refused, saying he could not interfere with Burma's internal matters. Proposals were also made to the Burmese government but they were rejected. The District of Sylhet in Assam Province also voted to reunite with the rest of East Bengal, and the Muslim League's campaign played

244-465: A full-fledged militia equipped with arms; 20. The United Front Ministry shall on no account extend the tenure of the Legislature and shall resign six months before the general elections to facilitate free and fair elections under an Election Commission; 21. All casual vacancies in the Legislature shall be filled up through by-elections within three months of the vacancies, and if the nominees of

305-476: A great role in facilitating this. A plebiscite was held which resulted in joining Pakistan. However, a large part of Sylhet's Karimganj subdivision was barred due to Abdul Matlib Mazumdar 's delegation. The Chittagong Hill Tracts , which had a 97% non-Muslim population (mostly Buddhist ), was awarded to Pakistan , by the Boundary Commission, due to it being inaccessible to India and to provide

366-532: A hub of political movements, including the Bengali language movement and pro-democracy groups. It was dissolved in 1955 and replaced by East Pakistan during the One Unit Scheme implemented by Prime Minister Mohammad Ali of Bogra . The provincial legislature was the East Bengal Legislative Assembly . Between 1905 and 1911, a province called Eastern Bengal and Assam existed in the region as part of

427-642: A landslide victory and gaining 223 seats in the 309-member assembly. The Awami League emerged as the majority party, with 143 seats. A. K. Fazlul Huq of the Krishak Praja Party became Chief Minister of East Pakistan upon the victory of the United Front. The election propelled popular Bengali leaders into the Pakistani federal government, with leaders such as Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy and Abul Mansur Ahmed becoming key federal ministers. In

488-649: A physicist and a bureaucrat. At AMU he gained a BA degree in accountancy . After graduating from AMU, he joined the Audit and Accounts Service in March 1920. In January 1921, he received his first official appointment as assistant audit officer with the Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway . Upon its merger into the East Indian Railway in 1925, Muhammad was briefly appointed a government executor of accounts with

549-493: A population of 19 million people in the year 1800 A.D, of which 10.716 million people were followers of Hinduism representing a majority of about 56.4% of the region's population, while 7.961 million adheres to the Muslim faith, constituting 41.9% of the region's population as 2nd largest community. The smaller number of 323,000 people followed Buddhism , Animism and Christianity , together presenting around 1.7% of

610-634: A substantial rural buffer to support Chittagong , a major city and port; advocates for Pakistan forcefully argued to the Bengal Boundary Commission that the only approach was through Chittagong. As a result of these mandates, the Mountbatten Plan and Radcliffe Line established East Bengal as a province of the newly formed Dominion of Pakistan in August 1947. Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin , a former prime minister of Bengal ,

671-479: Is followed by 991,000 people (0.6 percent of population), Christianity is followed by 495,000 people (0.3 percent of the population) and tiny micro-scopic minority of 165,000 people (0.1 percent of population) follow other religions most being tribal and Animists . 25°13′09″N 90°59′20″E  /  25.2192°N 90.9889°E  / 25.2192; 90.9889 Malik Ghulam Muhammad Sir Malik Ghulam Muhammad (20 April 1895 – 29 August 1956)

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732-734: The Bengal and North Western Railway , serving in this capacity from January to November. Having earned a reputation as an able and competent accountant, he was then appointed to the Indian Railway Board before becoming the Controller of General Supplies and Purchase of the Indian Railways. From June 1932 to February 1934, he was attached to the administration of Bhopal State , and worked under its nawab, Hamidullah Khan . In March 1934, he returned to government service and

793-785: The British Indian Empire . The All India Muslim League was founded in the British province in 1906. The All India Muslim League adopted the Lahore Resolution in 1940, which envisaged the creation of sovereign states in the Muslim-majority areas of eastern and northwestern British India. The League won elections in Bengal in 1946, receiving its largest mandate in the province. In May 1946, Rohingya Muslim leaders met with Muhammad Ali Jinnah , and asked for

854-780: The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan during Prime Minister Bogra's tenure. Malik Ghulam Muhammad was born in a Kakazai family, in suburban neighbourhood near Mochi Gate , in Lahore , Punjab , India . After completing his schooling in Lahore, he went to Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh to attend the MAO College of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), and was a roommate of Nazir Ahmed ,

915-763: The Coronation of Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey alongside the Governors-General from Canada , Australia , New Zealand , Union of South Africa and Dominion of Ceylon . Upon returning to Pakistan, he witnessed the agitation caused by the language movement in Dacca in East Pakistan , and the series of anti-Qadiyani protests in Lahore, Punjab in Pakistan. Both events led him to use

976-633: The Governor-General by Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin who himself took over the government as Prime Minister . Nationwide violence in the aftermath of the language movement in East Bengal and religious riots in Lahore made him dismiss the Nazimuddin administration using the reserve powers to restore stability. In 1955, he was forced to resign from the post of Governor-General due to worsening of his health conditions by then- Interior Minister Iskandar Ali Mirza , who himself took control of

1037-465: The Liaquat administration as the country's first Finance Minister where he helped draft the first five-year plans to alleviate the national economy . He co-founded Mahindra & Mohammed in 1945 (later Mahindra & Mahindra in 1948) with Jagdish Chandra Mahindra and Kailash Chandra Mahindra . Following the assassination of prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951, Malik was invited to be

1098-588: The Muslim world to the International Islamic Economics Organization in Pakistan, where he emphasised the idea of a Muslim economic bloc. During this time, he survived the fatal attack of paralysis that made him unable to talk or move effectively and began experiencing with poor health conditions. As early as 1951, Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan had made a decision of removing Finance Minister Ghulam Muhammad due to his continuing worsening health conditions. However,

1159-707: The Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) in the 1941 Birthday Honours list. In May 1942, Muhammad was assigned to the Hyderabad State administration, in which he served as an advisor to the Nizam of Hyderabad . In 1945, he helped co-found the Mahindra and Mohamed Steel Company together with steel industrialists, JC Mahindra and KC Mahindra where Muhammad served the company's chartered accountant. In 1945–47,

1220-629: The reserve powers awarded by the Government of India Act 1935 against Prime Minister Nazimuddin, effectively dismissing his administration only to be replaced with diplomat M. A. Bogra . In 1954, the Constituent Assembly made legislative attempts to try changing the 1935 act to establish checks and balances on the Governor-General's powers. In response, Muhammad dismissed the Constituent Assembly, an action that

1281-495: The Dhaka and Rajshahi Universities and to make them autonomous institutions; to make education cheaper and easily available to the people; 12. To curtail the cost of administration and to rationalise the pay scale of high and low paid government servants. The ministers shall not receive more than 1000 taka as monthly salary; 13. To take steps to eradicate corruption, nepotism and bribery, and with this end in view, to take stocks of

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1342-574: The Front are defeated in three successive by-elections, ministry shall resign from office. In the elections of East Bengal Legislative Assembly held in March 1954, the United Front won 223 seats out of 237 Muslim seats, whereas the ruling Muslim League managed to bag only 9 seats. However, within weeks of assuming power, the newly elected provincial legislature was dismissed by Governor-General Ghulam Muhammad , upon accusations against A K Fazlul Huq of attempting secession. The central government of Pakistan

1403-477: The Ministry of Finance in 1946. In the 1946 King's Birthday Honours List , the last honours list in which Indian civil servants were recognised, he received a knighthood . In 1946–47, Muhammad left Mahindra & Mahindra and joined the Ministry of Finance as a Cabinet Secretary under Finance Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, assisting him in drafting and preparing India's first union budget . After witnessing

1464-610: The Partition of India in 1947, he decided to acquire the citizenship of Pakistan and permanently settled in his native city, Lahore, on 14 August 1947. He was brought up in the Liaquat administration when Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan appointed him as country's first Finance Minister. He presented the first budget and submitted the draft of the First Five-Year Plans in 1948. In 1949, Muhammad invited leaders of

1525-810: The Punjab border between North India and Pakistan. Jinnah made his sole visit to East Bengal as governor general in 1948. During a speech to students in Dacca University , he resisted demands to make Bengali a federal language. His refusal sparked fierce protests among East Bengalis who comprised the majority of Pakistan's population. The proposal for Urdu as the sole national language met with strong opposition in East Bengal, where Urdu considered rather alien, especially in light in Bengali's rich literary heritage. When Jinnah died in 1948, Nazimuddin became

1586-434: The United Front was a key turning point in aggravating East Pakistan's grievances in the Pakistani union, and led Maulana Bhashani to openly call for separation and independence in 1957, in his Salaam, Pakistan (Farewell, Pakistan) speech. East Bengal The Partition of India , which divided Bengal along religious lines, established the borders of the Muslim-majority area of East Bengal. The province existed during

1647-692: The company initially registered as the Mahindra & Mohammad , and started the licensed production of the Willys jeeps in Bombay as Muhammad looked after the company's revenue and finances. After World War II , he was asked by Nawab of Bahawalpur , Sir Sadeq Mohammad Khan V to represent him at the Round Table Conferences , and during this time, he began formatting political relations with Liaquat Ali Khan. He left Hyderabad left to join

1708-620: The confidence of a majority in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan . The governor general later dissolved the constituent assembly itself. In the case of Federation of Pakistan v. Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan , the speaker of the dissolved constituent assembly challenged the governor general's decision in the Sindh High Court. The case proceeded to the apex court- the Federal Court of Pakistan- where Justice M. Munir ruled in favour of

1769-485: The decision was not taken due to the assassination of Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan in October 1951. On 17 October 1951, Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin nominated himself to succeed as Prime Minister, appointing his own cabinet, and consequently resigned his position as Governor-General of Pakistan and recommended King George VI to appoint Muhammad to succeed him as Governor-General. In 1953, Muhammad represented Pakistan at

1830-427: The direct control of the government of East Bengal, secure fair price of jute to the growers and to investigate into the jute-bungling during the Muslim League regime to punish those found responsible for it; 4. To introduce co-operative farming in agriculture and to develop cottage industries with full government subsidies; 5. To start salt industry (both small and large scale) to make East Bengal self-sufficient in

1891-491: The election manifesto adopted by the United Front runs as follows: 1. To recognise Bangla as one of the State Languages of Pakistan; 2. To abolish without compensation zamindari and all rent receiving interest in land, and to distribute the surplus lands amongst the cultivators; to reduce rent to a fair level and abolish the certificate system of realising rent; 3. To nationalise the jute trade and bring it under

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1952-537: The families of the martyrs; 18. To declare 21 February as ‘Shaheed Day’ and a public holiday; 19. The Lahore Resolution proposed full autonomy of East Bengal leaving defence, foreign affairs and currency under the central government. In the matter of defence, arrangements shall be made to set the headquarters of the army in West Pakistan and the naval headquarters in East Bengal and to establish ordnance factories in East Bengal, and to transform Ansar force into

2013-520: The federal government's responsibilities limited to only foreign affairs and defense. King Saud of Saudi Arabia sent a plane to bring Huq to a meeting with the monarch. The New York Times published an article claiming Huq wanted independence for East Bengal. While visiting Calcutta and New Delhi, Huq was received by Indian leaders. Barely a few months into office, Huq was dismissed by Governor General Ghulam Muhammad due to allegations against of Huq of inciting secession. After Governor General's rule

2074-488: The first flights between Karachi and Dacca . The airline later evolved into Pakistan International Airlines . The Chittagong Tea Auction was established in 1949. As a result of the Bengali language movement, East Bengal was a center of Bengali cultural activities. The University of Dacca was a hotspot of political thought. The East Bengal Regiment was formed on 15 February 1948 following Pakistan's independence and transition from post British rule. The infantry of

2135-423: The globe and Islam is the official state religion of Bangladesh by Article (2A). The population of Bangladesh is 165.2 million as per 2022 census report, of which majority of 150.49 million people (91.1 percent of Bangladeshis ) follow Islam , Hinduism is followed by 13.05 million people (7.9 percent of population) as second-largest religion, Buddhism being third-most followed religion and

2196-487: The goddess of small pox, Oladevi , goddess of cholera, Manasa , goddess of snakes and are recognised by Hindus and Muslims of Bangladesh both alike. Religion in Bangladesh ( 2022 census ) As of 21st century, the present region of East Bengal exists in form of sovereign Bangladesh today and is now an Islamic country both demographically and constitutionally as the country holds fourth-largest Muslim population in

2257-401: The governor general of Pakistan. The conservative Muslim League leader Nurul Amin succeeded Nazimuddin as chief minister. According to some sources, Amin had strained relations with the federal government, including Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan and Governor General Khawaja Nazimuddin. Historians have noted that Amin's government was not strong enough to administer the provincial state; it

2318-541: The governor general. Justice A. R. Cornelius expressed dissent and supported Speaker Khan. The dismissal of the prime minister and assembly was one of the first major blows to democracy and the rule of law in the Pakistani Union. Begum Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah called for Pakistan's constituent assembly to convene in Dacca as East Bengal was home to the majority of Pakistan's population. Orient Airways , owned by an East Bengal-based industrialist, launched

2379-475: The judiciary from the executive; 16. To locate the residence of the chief minister of the United Front at a less costly house, and to convert Burdwan House into a students hostel now, and later, into an institute for research on Bangla language and literature; 17. To erect a monument in memory of the martyrs of the Language Movement on the spot where they were shot dead, and to pay compensation to

2440-766: The legislative assembly. In the 1954, the United Front coalition resoundingly defeated the Muslim League with a landslide majority. The coalition included the Awami League, the Krishak Praja Party , the Democracy Party and Nizam-e-Islam . The esteemed lawyer A. K. Fazlul Huq , popularly known as the Sher-e-Bangla (Lion of Bengal), became chief minister. Huq established the Bangla Academy and called for greater provincial autonomy. He wanted

2501-562: The military and civil bureaucracy , not elected officials, would gain increasing influence over the country's policymaking. During this time, Muhammad's health began to deteriorate, and paralysis spread through his whole body, forcing him to take a leave of absence in 1955 to seek treatment in the United Kingdom. In his capacity, he appointed Interior Minister Iskandar Ali Mirza as acting Governor-General, but Mirza dismissed him from his post in order to take his place, supported by

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2562-656: The new Pakistan Army was made up exclusively of men from the western part of the country. It was consequently necessary to raise a regiment in the east. A total of eight battalions were raised. Paramilitary forces like the East Pakistan Rifles and East Pakistan Ansars were established, Ansars were deployed to the border areas in 1948 during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1947–1948 to prevent crimes and smuggling. Religions in East Bengal (1800 AD before partition) East Bengal (present-day-Bangladesh) had

2623-400: The office. After resignation, he fought a brief but unsuccessful battle with his illness, that ultimately resulted in his death in 1956. His personal image is viewed negatively by Pakistan's historians , criticized for giving rise to political intrigue, undermining the civilian control of the military by authorizing martial law in Pakistan , and devaluing nascent democratic norms by sacking

2684-617: The opposition political parties, to contest elections of the East Bengal Legislative Assembly in 1954 against the then party in power, Muslim league. The United Front was composed of four political parties of East Bengal, namely Awami Muslim League, Krishak Sramik Party, Nezam-e-Islam and Ganatantri Dal. The Front was formed on 4 December 1953 by the initiative of AK Fazlul Huq of Krishak Sramik Party, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani and Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy of Awami Muslim League. The 21-point package programme in

2745-651: The outbreak of the Second World War , Muhammad was successively appointed to increasingly important positions: chief controller of stores in March 1940, controller-general of purchase in September 1940 and additional secretary to the Department of Supply in March 1941. His wartime services as a professional accountant were recognized by the British government that year when he was appointed a Companion of

2806-417: The properties of all government officers and businessmen from 1940 onward and forfeit all properties the acquisition of which is not satisfactorily accounted for; 14. To repeal all Safety and Preventive Detention Acts and release all prisoners detained without trial, and try in open court persons involved in anti-state activities; to safeguard the rights of the press and of holding meetings; 15. To separate

2867-413: The provincial government, young leaders such as Sheikh Mujibur Rahman , Yusuf Ali Chowdhury and Khaleque Nawaz Khan rose to prominence. The United Front demanded greater provincial autonomy for East Pakistan. It passed a landmark order for the establishment of the Bangla Academy in Dhaka. Twenty One Point Programme objectives incorporated in the election manifesto of the united front, an alliance of

2928-528: The reforms and reorganization policies of Prime Minister of Pakistan Mohammad Ali of Bogra , East Bengal was renamed as East Pakistan on 14 October 1955. East Bengal existed when Pakistan did not have a written constitution. Instead, the Pakistani courts relied on English common law and the Objectives Resolution . In 1953, Prime Minister Khawaja Nazimuddin's government was dismissed by Governor General Ghulam Muhammad, in spite of enjoying

2989-588: The region's population. Bangladesh's capital Dhaka city name is said to have been derived from Dhakeshwari the patron goddess of the city, whose shrine is located in Ramna of Dhaka city. In Bangladesh, there's exist a blending culture of Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, folk religion, deities and practices. Worship exchanges takes place at temples and mosques and religious folk music gatherings (especially at Vaishnavite gatherings and among Muslim Sufis). Folk deities recognized by both Hindus and Muslim have included Shitala ,

3050-399: The reign of two monarchs, George VI and Elizabeth II ; and three governors-general , Muhammad Ali Jinnah , Khawaja Nazimuddin and Ghulam Muhammad . Its provincial governors included a British administrator and several Pakistani statesmen. Its chief ministership was held by leading Bengali politicians. East Bengal was the most populous and cosmopolitan province in the dominion . It was

3111-476: The rights of the labourer as per ILO Convention; 9. To introduce free and compulsory primary education throughout the country and to arrange for just pay and allowances to the teachers; 10. To restructure the entire education system, introduce mother tongue as the medium of instruction, remove discrimination between government and private schools and to turn all the schools into government aided institutions; 11. To repeal all reactionary laws including those of

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3172-452: The supply of salt, and to investigate into the salt-bungling during the Muslim League regime to punish the offenders; 6. To rehabilitate immediately all the poor refugees belonging to the artisan and technician class; 7. To protect the country from flood and famine by means of digging canals and improving irrigation system; 8. To make the country self-sufficient by modernising the method of cultivation and industrialisation, and to ensure

3233-477: The word Muslim, fashioned itself as secular and courted votes from East Bengal's large non-Muslim minorities. The language movement reached a climax in 1952. During the unrest, the police shot dead four student activists. This raised more opposition in the region to the Muslim League. Leading politicians in West and East Pakistan called for Amin's resignation. In subsequent provincial elections, Amin lost his seat in

3294-691: Was a Pakistani politician and economist who served as the third governor-general of Pakistan from 1951 to 1955. Educated at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), he joined the Indian Civil Service as a chartered accountant at the Indian Railway Accounts Service before being promoted to join the Ministry of Finance under Liaquat Ali Khan in 1946. After the Independence of Pakistan in 1947, he joined

3355-460: Was alarmed at the United Front's victory and while it instituted Governor General's rule in East Pakistan, the central government instituted the One Unit plan in West Pakistan, where they amalgamated all of Pakistan's provinces into one giant province called West Pakistan to try to prevent the smaller provinces from coordinating with East Bengal to offset Punjab's overwhelming power in the military and civil government of Pakistan. The One Unit scheme

3416-430: Was appointed deputy accountant-general (posts and telegraphs); in May, he was appointed as officiating deputy director-general (posts and telegraphs, finance), and was confirmed in the appointment in January 1935. In July 1936, he was appointed as officiating financial officer in the same department, was confirmed in his appointment in April 1937 and was promoted to financial officer (communications) in October. Following

3477-429: Was challenged in the Sindh High Court by Maulvi Tamizuddin , the Speaker of the Assembly. The Sindh High Court's Chief Justice Sir George Constantine ruled the Governor-General's decision unlawful, but the ruling was overturned by the Federal Court of Pakistan , led by Chief Justice Muhammad Munir , in a split decision. Historians consider this action the beginning of viceregal politics in Pakistan, in which

3538-416: Was completely under the control of the central government of Nazimuddin. His government did not enjoy enough power and lacked vision, imagination, and initiatives. In 1949, Maulana Bhashani led left-wing elements in the Muslim League to break away and form the Awami Muslim League . The new party was joined by Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy , a former prime minister of British Bengal. The new party later dropped

3599-472: Was essentially an anti-democratic provocation meant to stop East Bengal from taking advantage of its numerical superiority. It also alienated the smaller provinces of West Pakistan by robbing the Sindhis, Baluchis and Pashtuns of their provincial identities. The overthrow of the United Front government and the creation of the One Unit of West Pakistan alienated the Bengalis and caused them to demand maximum autonomy or even to secede from Pakistan. The dismissal of

3660-468: Was the first chief minister of East Bengal after partition. Nazimuddin was a senior leader of the Muslim League and a close confidante of Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah . Sir Frederick Chalmers Bourne was the first governor of East Bengal. Partition resulted in making many Hindus to leave East Bengal while Muslims from different parts of the Indian subcontinent migrated to East Bengal. The East–West Bengal border did not see as much violence as seen in

3721-523: Was withdrawn in 1954, Abu Hussain Sarkar briefly served as chief minister, before Governor General's rule was again imposed. He started the construction of Central Shaheed Minar . Governor General's rule was withdrawn in June 1955. Ataur Rahman Khan of the Krishak Sramik Party was the last chief minister. His government declared 21 February, the anniversary of the language movement, a public holiday. He later resigned on 30 August 1956 over inflation of food grains and subsequent food shortages. As part of

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