Syed Nazrul Islam
In the absence of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Vice President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Syed Nazrul Islam acted as President from 17 April 1971 till 10 January 1972, i.e., till the return of Bangabanhdu from Pakistan after the liberation of the country. It was Syed Nazrul Islam's unique privilege to usher the infant state of Bangladesh into the comity of nations. He was at the helm of affairs throughout the liberation struggle that culminated in the emergence of Bangladesh on 16 December 1971. As acting President of the Republic, he presided over the first Cabinet meeting at Bangabhaban on 23 December 1971*. He also received a number of dignitaries at Bangabhaban before the return of Sheikh Mujib from Pakistan.
Born in 1925 at Jasodal Dampara village in Kishorganj sadar upazila, Syed Nazrul Islam earned his M. A. degree in History in 1947 and LL. B. in 1953 from DU. He was vice president of Salimullah Muslim Hall Union (1946-47) and athletic secretary of the DU Central Students Union. He competed successfully in the central superior service examination in 1949 and got Taxation Service. After serving for a while in a government job, he joined A. M. College, Mymensingh as a teacher of history. However, he left his college job for politics in 1951. He actively participated in the historic Language Movement. He was elected President of Mymensingh district AL in 1957 and held the post till 1972. Nazrul was senior vice-president of the central committee of AL from 1964-72, and was acting President of AL from 1966-69 following the confinement of Sheikh Mujib during the Six Point Movement. Nazrul Islam was elected to the National Assembly from Mymensingh in 1970 and became Deputy Leader of the AL Parliamentary Party (ALPP). He became a member of the first cabinet of Mujib and held the charge of the Industries Ministry. Nazrul was elected unopposed to the JS from Mymensingh in 1973 and was again made Deputy Leader of ALPP in the Sangshad. With the introduction of one party BAKSAL rule in 1975, he was made Vice President of the Republic. Nazrul Islam was arrested on 23 August 1975 after Mujib's assassination. Confined in Dhaka central jail, he was also assassinated on 3 November 1975.
Justice Abu Sayeed Chowdhury
The Chief Justice of the HC of Bangladesh, Justice A.S.M. Sayem, swore in Justice Abu Sayeed Chowdhury as President of the Republic of Bangladesh on 12 January 1972. Justice Chowdhury's first official function was to administer the oath of office to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and eleven other members of his Cabinet. Justice Abu Sayeed Chowdhury was re-elected the President of Bangladesh on 10 April 1973 and continued to hold the office of President till 24 December 1973.
Son of Abdul Hamid Chowdhury, a former Speaker of EP Provincial Assembly, Abu Sayeed was born on 31 January 1921 in an illustrious family of Nagbari in Tangail. He graduated from Presidency College in 1940, and also obtained his M. A. and B. L. degrees from the Calcutta University. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1947. Barrister Chowdhury became Advocate General of EP in 1960; was a member of the Constitution Commission, 1960-61. He became Judge, Dhaka HC, 1961-72, Chairman of the Central Board for the Development of Bengali, 1963-68. He was also Vice - Chancellor of DU in addition to his own duties as Judge from November 1969 till 12 January 1972. In 1971, he was appointed Special Envoy of Bangladesh Government for Overseas and the UN and made significant contribution in mobilizing world public opinion in favour of the Liberation Struggle. On his resignation as President of the Republic in December 1973, Justice Chowdhury was appointed Special Envoy for external relations with the rank of a Minister. He was included as a member of Mujib's Cabinet on 8 August 1975. After Shiekh Mujib's assassination, Abu Sayeed Chowdhury became Minister for Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet of President Mustaque Ahmad. In 1978, Justice Chowdhury was elected a member of the UN sub-committee on the Prevention of Discrimination on Minorities, and in 1985 became Chairman of the UN Human Rights Commission.
Justice Chowdhury authored a valuable book entitled Probasey Muktijuddher Dingooli (1990). He married Begum Khurshida Chowdhury in 1948. They have three children, two sons and a daughter.
Justice Chowdhury died on 2 August 1987 in London.
