Biography of Sheikh Kamal

Sheikh Kamal, the eldest son of the Greatest Bangali of all times, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was born on the 5th of August 1949 at Tungipara in Gopalganj. He was the second of his five siblings.

Childhood: When his father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was arrested on the 14th of October 1949 while campaigning for the state language Bangla, Sheikh Kamal was an infant of two months and ten days. On the day of his father's release on the 27th of February 1952, Sheikh Kamal had just learned to speak a little. He did merely see his father that much to recognize him. All of a sudden, at that time, he asked his elder sister Sheikh Hasina, 'Hasu apa, can I call your father for a while my father?' Sheikh Kamal spent about 5/6 years of his childhood in Tungipara, a village depicted with the greenery canvas of Palm-Tamal-Hijal trees near the bank of the Baigar river. Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq formed the cabinet after the victory of the United Front led by the Awami League in the 1954 election. There Sheikh Mujib had become a Minister. Soon after receiving such a portfolio, he shifted all of his family members from Tungipara and started living in Dhaka.

Education: Sheikh Kamal was admitted to Dons Kindergarten School at 112-Segunbagicha in 1956 in the KG-I. He was admitted to class-V at the BAF Shaheen School in 1961 with double promotion after studying in Dons from KG-I to KG-III and Standard-I to Standard-III. The students of the Shaheen School's Titumir House elected him the Captain. Almost everyone in that house became his supporter because of his etiquette, manners, and great moral human qualities. When Sheikh Mujib remained out of jail, he used to take Sheikh Kamal to school. Otherwise, Kamal went to school on a scooter alone. He passed Secondary School Certificate examination from this school in 1967 and later got admission to Dhaka College. He received Higher Secondary School Certificate from Dhaka College in 1969. Sheikh Kamal got admission to the Department of Sociology at Dhaka University in 1969. He was a second-year student of BA (honors) during the liberation war. After achieving independence, he appeared in the final examination BA (honors) with illness; however, he secured second class with the fifth position. In his university life, Sheikh Kamal attended every class and even the tutorial classes. He also had a calligraphic handwriting style. Later, in 1975, he took part in the post-graduate examination in the same discipline. He appeared for the final oral test on the 14th of August. The result of the post-graduation examination came out on the 29th of January 1976 after his saddest demise. He obtained the second class in that examination as well. Nevertheless, many of his teachers expressed that Kamal got fewer marks than he deserved; otherwise, he would have done better.

In the Liberation War: On the 7th of March 1971, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, while taking dinner with all of his family members, said, 'I have declared what I had to announce in public today. The Government may now arrest or kill me at any moment. That is why you all will sit twice a day for lunch and dinner with me from today.' The same rule continued till lunchtime on the 25th of March. At around 9 pm on the 25th of March, Sheikh Kamal said goodbye to everyone and left out of the home. He returned the early next morning to the residence at 32-Dhanmondi and met his mother and brothers. The Pakistani army again attacked their house at 32-Dhanmondi on the 26th of March. That time Dr. Samad of the next house neighborhood sent his eldest son to bring Begum Mujib, Sheikh Jamal, and Sheikh Russell to his house. Sheikh Kamal left to join the war of liberation. After leaving home, he stayed with a Swiss family in Dhanmondi for the next few days. Later in disguise, he reached Gopalganj in mid-April with incredible difficulty. Sheikh Kamal, along with his cousin Mr. Ilias Ahmed Chowdhury, took refuge in Baspur of Kashiani and moved several times due to security threats. Finally, both of them left for India with the Tagore family of Orakandi. Started from Chaptabazar of Kashiani, Gopalganj, Sheikh Kamal had to have a long, tedious journey avoiding enemies' (Rajakar) eyes crossed over the Ichhamati river at Debhata-Hasnabad border in Kaliganj Upazila of Satkhira district to reach West Bengal, India. After reaching West Bengal, Sheikh Kamal moved to Delhi. There he met the Prime Minister of India, Smt. Indira Gandhi, at her residence and described the situation in Dhaka. Mrs. Gandhi told Sheikh Kamal to stay safe in Delhi and start studying. However, Sheikh Kamal expressed his gratitude to Mrs. Gandhi and replied that he wanted to join the war to liberate his beloved motherland. In exile, the Government of Bangladesh organized the Muktifauj, formed the Mukti Bahini (Liberation Army), and expanded it, sensing the prolonged fight with the Pakistan army. Accordingly, the Government selected Sixty-one highly qualified, intelligent, spirited young professionals from the 11 sectors of the Liberation War as Gentleman Cadets (GCs) to lead the Liberation Army, assigned them to the Indian Officers Training Wing (OTW) in Murti-camp of Dehradun near the Himalayas of present-day Uttarakhand. Sheikh Kamal was one of the 61 luckiest young men who completed the 'Bangladesh First War Course' and got a commission as lieutenant in the Bangladesh Army. The first war course started at the end of June 1971, and the participants had passed out on the 9th of October of the same year. Sheikh Kamal never felt sick while on the wheel of the 16-week training course in a very adverse environment. His physical fitness and performance were the best among all of his coursemates. He stood fifth in that training course. He served as the ADC (aide-de-camp) of General Osmani, the Commander-in-Chief of the Liberation Army during the War of Independence.

On the 19th of December 1971, two brothers, Captain Sheikh Kamal and Lieutenant Sheikh Jamal returned home from the war front to the then residence at Dhanmondi Road No. 18. At that time, they were wearing military uniforms. The eyes of the family members burst out in tears at their reunion about nine and a half months later. Sheikh Kamal received a promotion as Captain after the great victory in the liberation war due to giving two years of seniority to all the freedom fighter officers. Then he quitted the military service and returned to Dhaka University to restart his study. Sheikh Kamal did not receive the Freedom Fighter Certificate in his lifetime.

Sports Organizer and an Agile Player: Sheikh Kamal was the most incredible sports organizer of all time in Bangladesh. He had the most significant contribution to sports. Kamal started playing in the playground between North-South Road and Bijay Nagar in his childhood after arriving in Segunbagicha, Dhaka, from Tungipara. He played in a field at Lalmatia, Mohammadpur, during 1967-68. He also played in the Dhanmondi playground. However, there was no club for children and youth in the Dhanmondi area at that time. In that situation, he was the first who took the initiative. He first formed the Abahani Social Welfare Organization. Then after returning from the liberation war, he established the 'Abahani Sports Club' in 1972. He took that great initiative to protect the young generation from going astray in the post-independence situation and bring them back into a disciplined life. He went to watch the Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, in 1972. He led a 75-member delegation from Bangladesh to attend the 10th World Youth Conference held in Berlin, Germany, in 1973. Not only football, but he also formed hockey, cricket, and table tennis teams under Abahani Sports Club. His team was proud to be the national champion in all branches of the sports. In addition, his team won an inter-university basketball competition. At one time, he became very enthusiastic about providing modern costumes and equipment for sports to the players. He appointed British citizen Mr. Bill Heart as the first foreign coach in the independent country to render advanced training skills in sports. As a result of his various initiatives, the fame of this club spread all over the country. At one stage, he decided to establish district branches of Abahani Sports Club. He brought revolutionary changes in sports. Apart from taking steps to make the players self-reliant, he arranged resources to provide them retirement allowance. For the safety of the players, he set up a 'Players' Welfare Fund' with a grant of BDT 10 hundred thousand from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Political Activities: Sheikh Kamal's leadership in the political sphere was highly commendable. He played a very active role in every movement starting from 6-point, Agartala conspiracy case, 11-point, and non-cooperation movement. The Khan army arrested Bangabandhu while leading the 6-point movement in 1966. At that time, Sheikh Kamal organized the Awami League and Chhatra

League in 44 unions of the then Dhaka city without thinking of his life in jeopardy under Bangabandhu's secret instructions. Sheikh Kamal also led the Chhatra League activists to display black flags to the then Governor of Pakistan, Monem Khan, East Pakistan Students Conference chief guest at Dhaka College in 1968. On the night of the 20th of February 1969, he set up a martyr's minaret in front of the North Hostel of Dhaka College, ignoring the furious eyes of the Pakistanis. There, very early in the morning, all the students laid flower wreaths and took part in the morning parade. Sheikh Kamal led covert weapons training to build armed resistance against the Pakistani army during the non-cooperation movement in 1970. Sheikh Kamal, along with his elder sister Sheikh Hasina regularly participated in the election campaign on behalf of Awami League and Bangabandhu in Sutrapur-Kotowali, popularly known as the nest of the Muslim League in the election of 1970. As a result, Bangabandhu defeated Khwaja Khairuddin of the Muslim League by a considerable margin. Sheikh Kamal was one of the prominent members of the central committee of the Chhatra League. The Chhatra League faced huge factions to destabilizing the political environment of the newly independent country. Sheikh Kamal reorganized the Chhatra League and made the organization more robust than before with the help of his universal acceptance and negotiation power.

Cultural Personality and Organizer: Sheikh Kamal was a shining star in the world of culture. In this regard, he had a three- dimensional talent; he was a great actor, singer, and sitar player. Sheikh Kamal used to learn sitar, and his elder sister Sheikh Hasina practiced violin in Chhayanat. At the same institute, his younger brother Sheikh Jamal learned guitar. His youngest sister Sheikh Rehana trained in dancing and singing. Sheikh Kamal was a talented performer- in a nutshell, like professionals. His creative acting, depth of voice, and proficiency in creating mimicry of any sound made him unparalleled. He regularly rehearsed in Natyachakra and performed several plays there, which earned him massive popularity among the cultural connoisseurs. He was the key actor under the direction of M. Hamid in 'Danab (Monster)'- a translation of prominent playwright Maxim Gorky's 'The Devil.' He was the lead actor in 'Nabanna' by Bijan Bhattacharya, 'Roller and the Killed LMG' by Al Mansoor, 'I will be a Minister', and a good number of plays. He won first place in the inter-university stage performance competition. Sheikh Kamal had great respect for girls; at the same time, he was uncompromising on the issue of girls' safety breaches. After rehearsing from 10 to 11 at night, he would take the girls to their homes, sometimes by car and sometimes on foot, then he would go home. Sheikh Kamal participated in the Bangladesh-India Friendship Culture Exchange Fair held in Calcutta in April 1972 from Dhaka University Sanskriti Sangsad. He also performed the lead role in the play 'Keu Kichu Bolte Pare Na (No one can say anything)' by Shahid Munir Chowdhury. The original drama 'You Never Can Tell' was written by the playwright George Bernard Shaw.

He was runner-up all over Pakistan in the inter-college sitar competition. He stood in second place in the inter-college music competition. Before independence, he established a cultural organization called 'Mridanga' (an egg-shaped drum). He was the chief advisor of 'Spondon Shilpi Gosthi,' set up on the 17th of January 1972. He was the vice-president of Natyachakra. He introduced 'Talent Show' in the field of music. He proposed celebrating the university's 'Rag-Day' through rallies, cultural events, debate competitions, discussion meetings, sports competitions, photo exhibitions instead of celebrating in spreading colors.

Simplistic Lifestyle: Sheikh Kamal's only favorite personal property was a Toyota-68 model red car, which Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman used before becoming the Prime Minister. He had no attraction in money-making and business. Even though Begum Mujib was the wife of the undisputed leader and the supreme commander of Bangladesh, she did neither change her appearance nor wear foreign chiffon clothing. Similarly, their beloved first daughter Sheikh Hasina also went to Dhaka University classes wearing a simple cotton saree. Sheikh Kamal was never seen at the campus wearing a shirt tucked in. Instead, he wore loose full-sleeved T-shirts and pants and ordinary sandals or sandal-shoes on his feet. Sheikh Kamal never wore a suit in public. He was a die-heart fellow of the Chhatra League, but he was never interested in taking the leadership position. Sheikh Kamal was a brilliant, humble, and well-mannered young man. 'Simple Living, High Thinking' was the motto of the family members of Bangabandhu. Hence, instead of their happiness and comfort, national interests have always been the priority to them. The way the reactionary and counter-revolutionary forces started slandering the Bangabandhu's Government after independence, in the same way, fabricated criticisms and gossips brewed up about Sheikh Kamal. The then Jasad's print media 'Ganakantha' and 'Hakkatha" of the NAP of Bhasani played a very disgusting role in that regard. Mr. Abul Fazl, the former Vice-Chancellor of Chittagong University, was appointed as an advisor to the then military dictator Ziaur Rahman after the brutal killing of the Father of the Nation on the 15th of August 1975. He remarked in his speech, 'Sheikh Kamal was an ideal man. He had no prejudice. He was very down-to-earth and courteous'. Within few days of that statement, Zia dismissed Mr. Abul Fazl from the position of his advisor.

Marriage: Sheikh Kamal liked athlete Sultana Khukee. However, the marriage took place on a family initiative. Khukee's father was the chief engineer of Dhaka University. The couple got married on the 14th of July 1975 with the consent of the two families. Guests invited to the wedding were discouraged from bringing gifts. The wedding reception was straightforward. It served the guests in a most hospitable way but with the sweetmeat-biscuit and tea-samucha.

Heartbreaking 15th of August, '75: The Father of the Nation was to pay a visit to Dhaka University on the 15th of August 1975. A festive atmosphere was prevailing on the campus for that purpose. Sheikh Kamal had been leading a volunteer brigade for the past several days. With the spontaneous participation of general students, the unit started a clean-up exercise in the entire university area from the 1st of August. After attending Nasim Osman's wedding at the Dhaka Ladies Club started from Narayanganj on the 14th of August, he, along with his wife, returned to campus at night and had a meeting with the volunteer brigade members. When he was attempting to return home at midnight, he said he would come back in the morning on the day next. On the early morning of the 15th of August 1975, some betrayed soldiers attacked Bangabandhu's residence. At first, two policemen became injured in their fierce firing and started screaming. While Sheikh Kamal reached the reception room on the ground floor from the upstairs to understand the situation, the assassins shot him dead at first sight by a brushfire. In a short while, a great calamity broke down the fortune of the Bengali nation. One by one, the assassins mercilessly killed 18 family members, including the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The brave freedom fighter Captain Sheikh Kamal and other family members laid to rest at Banani Graveyard in the capital.

AH