Sheikh Kamal
{{Short description|Bangladeshi politician, athlete and military officer (1949–1975)}}
{{use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{infobox person
| honorific_prefix = Captain (Retd.)
| name = Sheikh Kamal
| native_name = {{lang|bn|শেখ কামাল}}
| image = Sheikh-Kamal-222-1167x660.jpg
| birth_date = {{birth date|1949|8|5|df=y}}
| birth_place = Tungipara, East Bengal, Pakistan
| death_date = {{death date and age|1975|8|15|1949|8|5|df=y}}
| death_place = Dacca, Bangladesh
| death_cause = Assassination
| resting_place = Banani graveyard, Dhaka
| father = Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
| mother = Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib
| alma_mater = Dhaka College
| occupation = {{Flatlist|
- Athlete
- politician
- military officer
- cultural worker
- actor
}}
| organization = Abahani Limited Dhaka
| citizenship = {{Plainlist|
- Pakistan (1949–1971)
- Bangladesh (1971–1975)
}}
| education = Master's
| family = {{ubl
| Sheikh Hasina (older sister)
| Sheikh Jamal (younger brother)
| Sheikh Rehana (younger sister)
| Sheikh Russel (younger brother)
}}
| awards = 30px Independence Award
National Sports Award
| module = {{Infobox military person |embed=yes
| allegiance = {{BAN}}
| branch = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Mukti Bahini-DeFacto.svg}} Mukti Bahini
{{Army|Bangladesh}}
| serviceyears = 1971–1973
| unit = 20px East Bengal Regiment
| commands = * Aide-de-camp (ADC) to the Commander-in-chief of Mukti Bahini
| battles = Bangladesh Liberation War
}}
| relatives = See Tungipara Sheikh family
| television = Triratna (1975)
| movement = Six point movement
Eleven Points Programme
1969 East Pakistan mass uprising
| spouse = {{marriage|Sultana Khuki|1975}}
}}
Sheikh Kamal (5 August 1949 – 15 August 1975) was a Bangladeshi politician, athlete and military officer. He was the eldest son of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding president of Bangladesh,{{cite news |last1=Hoque |first1=Shishir |title=Before going to Germany on July 31, 1975, I asked Sheikh Kamal - what do you need? In reply, he requested that I bring Adidas boots for his players at Abahani |url=http://www.dhakatribune.com/sport/2015/aug/15/going-germany-july-31-1975-i-asked-sheikh-kamal-what-do-you-need-reply-he-requeste |work=Dhaka Tribune |accessdate=10 February 2016 |archive-date=10 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010145825/http://www.dhakatribune.com/sport/2015/aug/15/going-germany-july-31-1975-i-asked-sheikh-kamal-what-do-you-need-reply-he-requeste |url-status=live}} and the younger brother of Sheikh Hasina, who would later become prime minister of Bangladesh. He was the founder of Abahani Limited Dhaka.
Early life and education
Kamal completed his matriculation from Shaheen School, Dhaka,{{Cite news |date=2020-08-15 |title=OP-ED: The legacy of Sheikh Kamal |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2020/08/15/op-ed-the-legacy-of-sheikh-kamal |access-date=2024-05-30 |work=Dhaka Tribune |archive-date=23 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723215936/https://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2020/08/15/op-ed-the-legacy-of-sheikh-kamal |url-status=live}} in 1967 and his Higher Secondary Certificate Examination from Dhaka College in 1969.{{Cite news |url=https://www.rtvonline.com/english/bangladesh/7180/Biography-of-Sheikh-Kamal |title=Biography of Sheikh Kamal |publisher=RTV}} He was the general secretary of the Chatro League at Dhaka College. He practiced sitar at Chhayanaut, a school of music. At the same time, he was involved in diverse cultural activities and a keen sportsman. Kamal was an organizer of the Mukti Bahini guerrilla struggle in 1971. Kamal received a wartime commission in the Bangladesh Army during the Liberation War of Bangladesh.
Kamal worked as the aide-de-camp (ADC) of General Osmani the commander-in-chief of the Mukti Bahini, during the Liberation War of Bangladesh. After independence, he left the military at the rank of captain to return to Dhaka University, where he graduated with honors in sociology.{{Cite news |url=http://dailyasianage.com/news/78103/?regenerate |title=Sheikh Kamal; The Asian Age Online, Bangladesh |website=The Asian Age}} He liked an athlete, Sultana Khuki, who was the first female blue of Dhaka University. On 14 July 1975, the couple married with the consent of the two families. He was perceived to be the successor to Sheikh Mujib.{{cite book |title=Bangladesh Country Study Guide Strategic Information and Developments. |date=2012 |publisher=Intl Business Pubns USA |isbn=978-1438773896 |pages=121 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bm-bBQAAQBAJ&q=%22Sheikh+Kamal%22&pg=PA121 |accessdate=10 February 2016 |archive-date=11 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210811044305/https://books.google.com/books?id=bm-bBQAAQBAJ&q=%22Sheikh+Kamal%22&pg=PA121 |url-status=live}}
Kamal, an avid sportsman, founded Abahani Limited Dhaka in 1972, a popular sporting club in Bangladesh. He enjoyed football, Badminton, volleyball, and other sports. Abahani went on to win many local championships and is considered one of the known football clubs in South Asia.{{cite news |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/sport/2020/08/04/abahani-to-recall-sheikh-kamal-on-71st-birth-anniversary |title=Abahani to recall Sheikh Kamal on 71st birth anniversary |work=Dhaka Tribune |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=3 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303170243/https://www.dhakatribune.com/sport/2020/08/04/abahani-to-recall-sheikh-kamal-on-71st-birth-anniversary |url-status=live}}
Death
{{main|Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman}}
Kamal and his wife were killed along with the rest of his family,{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/08/23/archives/bangladesh-coup-a-day-of-killings-account-depicts-how-young.html |title=Bangladesh Coup: A Day of Killings |work=The New York Times |date=23 August 1975}}{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/08/15/archives/mujib-reported-overthrown-and-killed-in-a-coup-by-the-bangladesh.html |title=Mujib Reported Overthrown and Killed in a Coup by the Bangladesh Military |work=The New York Times |date=15 August 1975}} except for his sisters Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana on 15 August 1975.{{cite news |last1=Mahbub |first1=Sumon |title=Bangladesh plunges into mourning Bangabandhu on his 40th death anniversary |url=https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/bangladesh-plunges-into-mourning-bangabandhu-on-his-40th-death-anniversary |work=bdnews24.com |date=15 August 2015 |access-date=10 February 2016}}
Legacy
= Controversy =
== 1973 shootout ==
Near the end of 1973, Kamal was involved in a shootout in which he was inflicted with bullet injuries. Multiple claims have been made as to how the shootout occurred.
However, a retired major general of the Bangladesh Army claimed that it was a case of friendly fire. Near the end of 1973, Bangladeshi security forces received intelligence that the left-wing revolutionary activist Siraj Sikder and his insurgents were going to launch coordinated attacks around Dhaka.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}} Police and other security officers were on full alert and patrolling the streets of Dhaka in plainclothes. Kamal and his friends were armed and also patrolling the city in a microbus, looking for Siraj Sikder. When the microbus was in Dhanmondi the police mistook Sheikh Kamal and his friends to be insurgents and opened fire on them, injuring Kamal.{{Cite news |last=Askari |first=Rashid |date=5 August 2016 |title=The story of an unsung hero |work=The Daily Observer |url=https://www.observerbd.com/details.php?id=27137&fb_comment_id=702925183114256_1167127280027375 |url-status=live |access-date=23 June 2020 |archive-date=26 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626213637/https://www.observerbd.com/details.php?id=27137&fb_comment_id=702925183114256_1167127280027375}} However, it is also claimed that Kamal and his friends were in Dhanmondi to test drive a new car that his friend Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku had bought recently. Since Dhaka was under heavy police patrol, police special forces under the command of then-city SP Mahamuddin Bir Bikrom opened fire on the car, thinking that the passengers were miscreants.{{Cite news |date=2015-09-09 |title=Sheikh Kamal the person I knew {{!}} banglanews24.com |url=https://www.banglanews24.com/national/article/44755/Sheikh-Kamal-the-person-I-knew |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200625173229/https://www.banglanews24.com/national/article/44755/Sheikh-Kamal-the-person-I-knew |archive-date=2020-06-25 |access-date=2020-06-23 |work=banglanews24 |language=en}}
== Abduction of Major Dalim ==
Kamal is also accused of abducting Nimmi Dalim and her husband, Shariful Haque Dalim (who later assassinated Kamal and his family), from the Dhaka Ladies Club and taking them to the Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini headquarters. Gazi Golam Mostafa and his two sons were also accused of being involved in this abduction. This was one of the reasons that Shariful Haque Dalim held a grudge against the Sheikh family. However, it is also alleged that Kamal was uninvolved in this incident, and Gazi Golam Mostafa, along with his sons, acted alone in the abduction. It is claimed that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman personally ordered Shariful Haque Dalim and his wife to be released and mediated a compromise between the concerned parties.
= Namesakes =
{{Update section|date=November 2024}}
- Sheikh Kamal International Cricket Stadium Academy Ground in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, was named after him.{{cite web |title=NZ's Under-19 Cricket World Cup ends after Afghanistan put them in a spin |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/76725566/nzs-under19-cricket-world-cup-ends-after-afghanistan-put-them-in-a-spin |website=Stuff |date=9 February 2016 |publisher=Fairfax New Zealand Limited |accessdate=10 February 2016 |archive-date=9 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209182745/http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/76725566/nzs-under19-cricket-world-cup-ends-after-afghanistan-put-them-in-a-spin |url-status=live}}
- Shaheed Sheikh Kamal Bridge on the Andharmanik River is also named after him.{{cite news |last1=Hossain |first1=Sohrab |title=Two bridges on Patuakhali- Kuakata road await opening |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/country/news/two-bridges-patuakhali-kuakata-road-await-opening-208354 |work=The Daily Star |date=28 January 2016 |access-date=10 February 2016}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{commons category-inline}}
{{Sheikh Mujibur Rahman}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamal, Sheikh}}
Category:Awami League politicians
Category:Tungipara Sheikh family
Category:Place of birth missing
Category:Recipients of the Independence Award
Category:Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Category:Mukti Bahini personnel
Category:Recipients of the Bangladesh National Sports Award
Category:20th-century Bangladeshi sportsmen
Category:Children of presidents of Bangladesh