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The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi meeting the President of Bangladesh, Md. Abdul Hamid. Photo by Prime Minister’s Office.

Top 10 Remarquable Facts about Mohammad Abdul Hamid

Md. Abdul Hamid Advocate was born on January 1, 1944, in Kamalpur, Mithamoin Upazilla, Kishoregonj district. Late Hazi Md. Tayebuddin is his father’s name, and Late Tomiza khatun is his mother’s. Mr. Abdul Hamid received his I.A. and B.A. from Gurudayal College in Kishoregonj, as well as his LLB from Dhaka University’s Central Law College.

He became an advocate at Kishorgonj Bar after passing LLB. He served as President of the Kishoregonj District Bar Association five times between 1990 and 1996. Mr. Abdul Hamid became involved in politics while still a student in 1959.

In 1961, while still in college, he led the anti-Ayub movement and was imprisoned by the Pakistani government for his involvement in the student movement. In 1963, he was elected General Secretary and Vice-President of the Student Union at Gurudayal College in Kishoregonj.

1. Hamid was born in the village of Kamalpur

He began his education at the village primary school. He went to his relative’s house in Bhairabpur, Bhairab, after finishing primary school, and enrolled in Bhairab K.B. Pilot High School for secondary education. Hamid graduated from Gurudayal Government College in Kishoreganj with an I.A. and a B.A.

He earned his LL.B. from Central Law College, which is now part of Dhaka University. He then became an advocate at Kishoregonj Bar. Between 1990 and 1996, he served as President of the Kishoregonj District Bar Association five times.

2. His political career kicked off in Gurudayal Government College

Hamid joined the Chhatra League as the vice-president of Gurudayal Government College in 1959, while still a student in Kishoreganj. In 1966-67, he was also elected vice-president of the Chhatra League of Mymensingh District Unit. He joined the Awami League at the end of 1969. Hamid was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Mymensingh-18 constituency in Pakistan’s general election in 1970.

3. Hamid started the movement in Kishoregonj amid tumultuous protest against Pakistani regime

Mohammad Abdul Hamid (on the right) and The Vice President, Shri Mohd (on the left). Photo by Vice President’s Secretariat. Wikimedia

He did so in order to sway public opinion in favor of independence. Following the movement, he hoisted the flag of independent Bangladesh emblazoned with the map at a massive student gathering at Rothkhala field in Kishoregonj on March 17, 1971, attended by thousands of students and people. He immediately joined the Liberation War after receiving the historic proclamation of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu for independence via telegraphic message on the morning of March 26, 1971.

11 crore and 78 lacs from National Bank of Pakistan branches in Kishoregonj, Bhairab, and Bazitpur in early April 1971, with the cooperation of Bangalee Army officers, and deposited the entire amount safely in the National Bank of Pakistan and deposited the entire amount safely in the National Bank of Pakistan at its Brahmanbaria Branch, thinking of it as a safe place of custody at the time for use in the Liberation War.

4. Mr. Hamid began his political career at a young age

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi meeting the President of Bangladesh, Md. Abdul Hamid. Photo by Prime Minister’s Office.

He was the youngest member of the government to be elected. He was elected as an Awami League candidate to the Kishoreganj-5 constituency in the general elections of 1973, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001, and 2009. From 1996 to 2001, he served as the Deputy Speaker of Bangladesh’s National Parliament under an Awami League government.

He was elected Speaker of the National Parliament on January 25, 2009. In 2013, he received the Independence Day Award for his contribution to the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.

5. Mr. Hamid was imprisoned by the Military Government

In 1962, the then-Pakistani government imprisoned him for his active participation in the student movement and opposition to the Hamoodur Rahman Education Commission Report. He was also imprisoned for the assassination of the nation’s father, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

6. He went to India to take part directly in the War of Liberation

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, the President of Bangladesh, Mr. Abdul Hamid and the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Ms. Sheikh Hasina at the conferring of the Award of Bangladesh Liberation War. Photo by Prime Minister’s Office.

At the time, the majority of the Members of Parliament from Chittagong, Noakhali, and Comilla were staying there. Mr. Hamid discussed various Liberation War strategies with them. He discussed issues with local public representatives and high government officials in Agartola side by side. Later, toward the end of April, he returned to Bangladesh to further organize people before returning to India. He traveled to Balat with several associates via Tekarhat, Gumaghat, Panchara, and Moilam in Meghalaya. In Balat, he established a Youth Reception Camp for those who came from Bangladesh to fight in the Liberation War.

He was the leader of that camp. This camp was primarily responsible for the recruitment of youth from Kishoregonj, Netrokona, and Sunamgonj to join the war as freedom fighters. He was also a prominent member of the Zonal Administrative Council formed in Meghalaya to direct the Liberation War and better manage the refugees.

7. Mr. Md. Abdul Hamid took over as President on March 14, 2013

Md. Zillur Rahman, the then-President, was receiving treatment in Singapore. Mr. Hamid took over as Acting President on March 20, 2013, following the death of Md. Zillur Rahman in Singapore. Md. Hamid was later elected unopposed as Bangladesh’s 22nd President on April 22, 2013.

On April 24, 2013, he was sworn in as President of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

8. President Abdul Hamid established an unprecedented record in Bangladeshi history

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi meeting the President of People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Mr. Md. Abdul Hamid. Photo by Prime Minister’s Office.

He is Bangladesh’s first politician to be re-elected president after serving his first term. He is a fortunate president for a variety of reasons. Not only that, but he served a five-year term without being involved in any controversy. None of his predecessors have had such good fortune.

9. Hamid has been married to Rashida Hamid since 1964

Bride pulls her groom by the hand. Photo by redcouchphoto.

Rashida Hamid is a Bangladeshi teacher, public figure, and the country’s First Lady. She has been a country’s First Lady since March 14, 2013. Rashida Hamid was born in the towns of Jaffarabad, Karimganj, and Kishoreganj.

Hamid graduated from SV Government High School in 1963 and Gurudayal Government College in 1964. In 1972, she graduated from Gurudayal Government College. They have three sons and one daughter together.

10. President Abdul Hamid gave his approval to a contentious new law

On September 19, the Bangladesh Parliament passed the Digital Security Act, which combined the colonial-era Official Secrets Act with harsh new provisions such as warrantless arrests. President Abdul Hamid signed the Digital Security Act, making it law. The media organizations are concerned that it will stifle press freedom and limit free speech in the South Asian country.