Hafizuddin Ahmed

Hafizuddin Ahmed
Born	29 October 1939 Bhola
Nationality	Bangladeshi
Known for	Bir Bikrom

Hafizuddin Ahmed is a retired Bangladesh Army major and a former member of the Bangladesh parliament. He fought in the Bangladesh Liberation War. He was awarded the third highest gallantry award in Bangladesh, the Bir Bikrom, for his courage. He is now serving as a vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.

Hafiz was born on 29 October 1939 in Lalmohan, Bhola. His father, Dr. Azharuddin, was a member of the National Council of East Pakistan from Bhola. In 1968, Hafiz received his MA degree in Political Science from Dhaka University.

Hafiz was a football player during his university days. He later joined the Mohammedan Sporting Club, in 1964. He was selected for the Pakistan national football team in 1967.

While playing for the Pakistan and Mohammedan football teams, in 1967, Hafiz was inspired to join the Pakistan Army by the General Secretary of the Pakistan Football Federation, Major Mohammad Hossain Malik. Hafiz applied to join the army's Education Corps, and was commissioned in 1968. He was trained at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul, Abbottabad. After being commissioned, he continued his career as a football player and participated in many tournaments. After the 1970 Bhola cyclone, he, as a captain, with Bravo Company, engaged in relief work at Galachipa, Patuakhali.

Hafiz was at Jagdishpur Village in the border area of Jessore as part of a training exercise. He was barred from all type of communication there and had no idea of Operation Searchlight, by Pakistan Army, and the declaration of independence of Bangladesh. He returned to the Jessore Cantonment on 29 March. He learned from his batman that there was an order for the Baloch Regiment to disarm the East Bengal Regiment, and that 25 Baloch Regiment and 3 Frontier Force had taken up positions in front of the cantonment. The arsenal had been broken into by East Bengal non-commissioned officers and soldiers. He joined the Bangladesh Liberation War and asked his commanding officer, Colonel Jalil, to join the war. But Jalil, who maintained contact with M. A. G. Osmani of the Bangladesh Awami League, refused to join the liberation, as Osmani had asked.

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