Jahanara Imam
| Jahanara Imam জাহানারা ইমাম |
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|---|---|
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| Born |
3 May 1929 Murshidabad, West Bengal, British India |
| Died | 26 June 1994 (aged 65) Detroit, Michigan, US |
| Resting place | Dhaka, Bangladesh |
| Education | MA |
| Alma mater | University of Dhaka |
| Spouse | Shariful Alam Imam Ahmed (1948–1971) |
| Children |
Shafi Imam Rumi (son) Saif Imam Jami (son) |
| Relatives | Syed Abdul Ali (father) Hamida Ali (mother) |
Jahanara Imam (Bengali: জাহানারা ইমাম) (3 May 1929 – 26 June 1994) was a Bangladeshi writer and political activist. She is widely remembered for her efforts to bring those accused of committing war crimes in the Bangladesh Liberation War to trial. She was known as "Shaheed Janani" (Mother of Martyrs).
Jahanara Imam was born to a Muslim family in Murshidabad, West Bengal, India in May 3, 1929. She was the eldest daughter in a family of three brothers and four sisters. Her father Syed Abdul Ali was a Civil Servant in the Bengal Civil Service. She lived in many different parts of Bengal – wherever her father was posted. Her mother Hamida Ali, was a housewife. At that time there was a lot of social pressure against Muslim women pursuing further studies, but Hamida was determined that Jahanara's education would not be constrained.
After finishing her studies in 1945 in Carmichael College in Rangpur, Jahanara Imam went to Lady Brabourne College of Calcutta University and in 1947 obtained her bachelor's degree. She was an activist in Lady Brabourne College. After the partition of India, she joined her family in Mymensingh in what became East Pakistan and started teaching at Vidyamoyee Govt. Girls High School.
In 1948 she married Shariful Alam Imam Ahmed, a Civil Engineer, whom she met in Rangpur while studying at Carmichael College. They settled in Dhaka and she joined Siddheswari Girls School as Head Mistress. She was instrumental in transforming the school one of the top girls' schools in Dhaka.
She was the first editor of the monthly women's magazine called "Khawateen". It started its publication in 1952 and she ran it successfully for several years.
In 1960 she gave up her job as Head Mistress to concentrate on bringing up her two sons Rumi and Jami born in 1952 and 1954 respectively. She said to herself "I have given education to thousands of school children, now I should spend some time to bring up my own children".
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