Abdul Gaffar Choudhury’s body will come on Thursday

The body of prominent writer and columnist Abdul Gaffar Choudhury, best known for writing the lyrics of ‘Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano’, will arrive in Dhaka on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said this to journalists in the capital Dhaka on Friday.

His body will be taken to Central Shaheed Minar where people from all walks of life will pay their last respects to him, he also said.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneem said, after the completion of required procedures, we will send his body to Dhaka on a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight next week.

Abdul Gaffar Choudhury’s first namaz-e-janaza was held at London’s Brick Lane mosque after Jummah prayers on Friday.

Mayor of Tower Hamlets Mohammad Lutfur Rahman, Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneem, officials and employees of the mission, members of British Bangladeshi community, journalists, cultural activists and cross section of Bangladeshi expats attended the namaz-e-janaza.

Later, Choudhury’s body was kept at the Shaheed Minar of historic Shaheed Altab Ali Park in East London to allow British-Bangladeshi community and other admirers to have their last glimpse of Choudhury who was also a 1952 Language Movement veteran.

According to Abdul Gaffar Choudhury’s wishes, he will be buried beside the grave of his wife at Mirpur Martyred Intellectuals’ Graveyard in the capital Dhaka.

Abdul Gaffar Choudhury breathed his last at 7.00am on Thursday (local time) at a hospital in London, UK. He was 88 years.

Choudhury was born on December 12, 1934 in the village of Ulania under Mehendiganj in Barishal. His father was Hazi Wahed Reza Choudhury, a landlord and freedom fighter of British India, and mother Zohra Khatun.

He graduated from Dhaka University in 1959 and came to England on 5 October in 1974. Mr. Choudhury worked as a journalist in different national newspapers in Dhaka. During the 1971 Bangladesh’s Liberation War, he worked for Joy Bangla, Jugantar and Anandabazar Patrika.

He wrote more than 35 five books. Some of his notable works are “Danpithe Shawkat”, “Chandrodwiper Upakhyan”, “Nam Na Jana Bhore”, “Nil Jamuna”, “Shesh Rajanir Chand”, “Polashi Thekey Dhanmondi” and “Bastobotar Nirikhey”.

Choudhury received numerous awards including Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1967, Ekushey Padak, UNESCO Literary Award, Bangabandhu Award, Shanghati Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008, Sadhinota Padak in 2009. In the same year, The Daily Ittefaq honoured him with Manik Miah Padak. In 2014, he was awarded with the PIB-Sohel Samad Memorial Award.