Gole Afroz
| Gole Afroz গোল-ই আফ্রোজ | |
|---|---|
 Gole Afroz being received by the people in Natore | |
| Born |
Begum Gole Afroz British Empire (now Bangladesh) |
| Residence |
 Dhaka, Bangladesh |
| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Known for | Gole Afroz College |
| Family | Singranatore family |
Begum Gole Afroz (Bengali: গোল-ই আফ্রোজ, born 1947) is a Bangladeshi socialite and member of the prominent Singranatore family, the wife of politician M. M. Rahmat Ullah. She is the oldest daughter of Gulbadan Begum of Natore, the oldest child of Jalaluddin Mirza and her husband Shamez Uddin Ahmed.
Biography
The princely House of Singra and Natore (Singranatore Zamindari) was a formerly ruling family who were hereditary lords (Zamindars) in the northwestern region of Rajshahi in erstwhile East Bengal in the area of present day Singra, Bangladesh. In 1950, the State Acquisition Act was adopted by the erstwhile democratic Government of East Pakistan, abolishing the rights of the feudal ruling families. The Singranatores, who served as vassals to the Maharajas of Natore and Maharajas of Dighapatia also produced many politicians and influentials, the Honourable Junaid Pollock, dubbed the "youngest elected lawmaker of Bangladesh" is a distant cousin. Other members of her family served as the Aide-de-camp to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and Aides to the military dictators in the 1980s and 1990s.[1]
In 1991, after former military dictator General Ershad stepped down as the President of Bangladesh, her husband, politician MM Rahmatullah, former Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department and later the Chairman of the Capital Development Authority was charged in the infamous Janata Tower Case and named the third defendant after the President and the former First Lady (and Member of Parliament) by the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He was later acquitted when the Judge agreed that the case was filed on political grounds by the newly elected ruling party.
Legacy
The Gole Afroz College, the first public college in Singra (now under the Government of Bangladesh) was named in her honor during the provincial government of East Pakistan in 1970. After the devastating war of 1971, a private college, the Rahmat Iqbal College was set up and named her second born son.[2][3]
See also
Sources
- ↑ Chowdhury, S. R. Kumar; P. K., Singh; Ismail, M. Ali (2012). Blood Dynasties: Zemindaris of Bengal - A Chronicle of Bengal’s Ruling families (Paperback). Dictus: Politics and Democracy series. ISBN 9783847385080. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
- ↑ Soszynski, Henry (1996). "Brief history of the Singranatore family" (Website). Australia: Genealogical Gleanings of the Indian Princely States. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
- ↑ Prothista Porichiti: Gole Afroz Shorkari Degree College 1996.