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Hafiz, Abdul (1907-1994) journalist and litterateur.
Abdul Hafiz was born in December 1907 in Lakshmipur under Nabinagar upazila
of Brahmanbaria district. Son of Munshi Aftabuddin, a Persian scholar,
he belonged to a family that was keen in practising Islamic culture and
learning. He started his education in the village maktab and graduated
from the Dhaka University. A good sportsman he was in the University football
team.
In December 1933 while a student of MA final year he joined the
Calcutta Police as Sub-Inspector and was a player of the police
football and hockey teams. A keen angler he, in his later
life, became a member of the Amateur Anglers Association of Dhanmandi.
Interested in music and literature, he was befriended with persons
like Sachin Dev Barman, Ustad Amir Khan and such other dignitaries.
On partition of India he opted for the then East Pakistan and
served as Deputy Superintendent of the Intelligence Branch from
1950 to 1963 and in 1963 was promoted to the rank of Additional
Superintendent of Police.
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Abdul Hafiz |
After voluntary retirement from police service he worked
from 1966 to 1968 as Chief Editor of the Franklin Book Programme. When
it closed down he became involved with the Ittefaque Group of Publications.
He edited and compiled the works of Tofazzal Hossain (Manik Mian). From
its inception in 1978 to March 1994 he was the Editor of Weekly Robbar.
Abdul Hafiz was specially interested in translation
works and has translated about 20 books of Pearl S Buck, Erich Maria Remarque,
Grazia Deledda, Sinclair Lewis, Upton Sinclair, Hafiz and others. His
deep love for world literature created within him the urge to make it
accessible in Bangla. A unique personality, he successfully combined a
policeman's routine with that of a litterateur. His original published
work is Ja Dekhechhi (reminiscences of a policeman). In recognition
of his contributions he was awarded the Bangla Academy Award for translation
in 1977.
In 1988 Abdul Hafiz established a Trust Fund named after
him and his father, with the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. The Trust
aims at encouraging the practice of Persian as a secular cultural heritage
of this region. Abdul Hafiz breathed his last on 30 October 1994. [Lala
Rukh Selim]
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