The Bangladesh Observer
Encyclopedia
The Bangladesh Observer, founded by Hamidul Huq Choudhury
in 1949, was the oldest continuously published English language daily newspaper in Bangladesh, whose tumultuous history mirrors the history of the land and people it represents.
Since its inception as The Pakistan Observer in 1949, the newspaper consistently followed an independent editorial policy. Mohammad Shehabullah was its first editor who was succeeded by Abdus Salam
. The East Pakistan provincial government imposed an embargo on the newspaper's publication under the repressive Public Safety Act in February 1952 in response to the newspaper's strong support for the East Pakistan language movement and demands for provincial autonomy. Hamidul Huq Choudhury
and Abdus Salam were also arrested at this time by the Pakistan Government to stifle the voice of the press. The United Front government withdrew the embargo on its publication in May 1954. At that time Abdul Ghani Hazari took charge as managing editor of the paper. In the early 1960s, the paper was black-listed and deprived of government advertising because of its strident calls for autonomy for East Pakistan.
Immediately after the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, The Pakistan Observer was renamed The Bangladesh Observer in December 1971. Management of the The Bangladesh Observer was taken over by the Bangladesh government in January 1972., As the result of an editorial titled "The Supreme Test" published in March 1972, Abdus Salam was dismissed and Obaidul Haq assumed the position of editor. The military government of General Ershad restored the newspaper to its original owner Hamidul Huq Choudhury
in January 1984. KMA Munim was appointed as editor of the newspaper in August 1984. Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury served as editor since 1998.
On June 8, 2010, The Bangladesh Observer announced that it had stopped publishing.
Hamidul Huq Choudhury
Hamidul Huq Choudhury was born in Noakhali District, Bengal during the British Raj. He was educated in Dhaka and Calcutta, and had a varied, distinguished and at times controversial career as a lawyer, politician and newspaper proprietor.- Education :Hamidul Huq was educated at the Dacca...
in 1949, was the oldest continuously published English language daily newspaper in Bangladesh, whose tumultuous history mirrors the history of the land and people it represents.
Since its inception as The Pakistan Observer in 1949, the newspaper consistently followed an independent editorial policy. Mohammad Shehabullah was its first editor who was succeeded by Abdus Salam
Abdus Salam (Editor)
Abdus Salam, born on 2 August 1910 in the village South Dharmapur in the Chhagalnaiya Upazila of Feni District in Bangladesh, was one of the most well-known newspaper editors of Pakistan, editing the Pakistan Observer from 1949 to 1972, except for a discontinuity from 1952 to 1954, when the...
. The East Pakistan provincial government imposed an embargo on the newspaper's publication under the repressive Public Safety Act in February 1952 in response to the newspaper's strong support for the East Pakistan language movement and demands for provincial autonomy. Hamidul Huq Choudhury
Hamidul Huq Choudhury
Hamidul Huq Choudhury was born in Noakhali District, Bengal during the British Raj. He was educated in Dhaka and Calcutta, and had a varied, distinguished and at times controversial career as a lawyer, politician and newspaper proprietor.- Education :Hamidul Huq was educated at the Dacca...
and Abdus Salam were also arrested at this time by the Pakistan Government to stifle the voice of the press. The United Front government withdrew the embargo on its publication in May 1954. At that time Abdul Ghani Hazari took charge as managing editor of the paper. In the early 1960s, the paper was black-listed and deprived of government advertising because of its strident calls for autonomy for East Pakistan.
Immediately after the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, The Pakistan Observer was renamed The Bangladesh Observer in December 1971. Management of the The Bangladesh Observer was taken over by the Bangladesh government in January 1972., As the result of an editorial titled "The Supreme Test" published in March 1972, Abdus Salam was dismissed and Obaidul Haq assumed the position of editor. The military government of General Ershad restored the newspaper to its original owner Hamidul Huq Choudhury
Hamidul Huq Choudhury
Hamidul Huq Choudhury was born in Noakhali District, Bengal during the British Raj. He was educated in Dhaka and Calcutta, and had a varied, distinguished and at times controversial career as a lawyer, politician and newspaper proprietor.- Education :Hamidul Huq was educated at the Dacca...
in January 1984. KMA Munim was appointed as editor of the newspaper in August 1984. Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury served as editor since 1998.
On June 8, 2010, The Bangladesh Observer announced that it had stopped publishing.