Amir Hossain Amu
আমির হোসেন আমু
Amu in 2015
Member of the Bangladesh Parliament
for Jhalokati-2
Assumed office
January 2009
LeaderSheikh Hasina
Preceded byIsrat Sultana Elen Bhutto
Parliamentary groupGrand Alliance
Minister of Industries of Bangladesh
In office
January 2014 – December 2019
Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina
Preceded byDilip Barua
Succeeded byNurul Majid Mahmud Humayun
Minister of Food of Bangladesh
In office
March 2000 – July 2001[1]
Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina
Preceded byA. Z. M. Naziruddin
Advisory Council Member of Bangladesh Awami League
Assumed office
1 January 2022
Personal details
Born (1940-01-01) 1 January 1940
Jhalokati, Bakerganj, Bengal, British India (now, Barisal, Bangladesh)
Political partyBangladesh Awami League
Alma materUniversity of Dhaka

Amir Hossain Amu (born 1 January 1940) is a Bangladeshi politician, the incumbent Member of Parliament from Jhalokati-2,[2] and served as the Minister of Industries during 2014–2018.[3] He is currently the coordinator and spokesman for the Awami League-led 14-party Grand Alliance.[4]

Birth and education

Amu was born on 1 January 1940 in Jhalakathi subdivision of Barisal district. His father Mohammad Moazzem Hossain and mother Aklima Khatun. He obtained BA from Barisal BM College in 1965 and LLB from Barisal Law College in 1968. He earned graduation degree in history from the University of Dhaka.[5]

Career

Amu contested the General Election in 1991 from Jhalokati-2 as a candidate of the Awami League but came third third after Gazi Aziz Ferdous of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Zulfiker Ali Bhutto of the Jatiya Party.[6] He had received 30,808 while the winner had received 43,673 votes.[6]

Amu contested the General Election in 2001 from Jhalokati-2 as a candidate of the Awami League but lost to Israt Sultana Elen Bhutto of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.[6] He had received 54,378 votes while she had received 92,116 votes.[6]

On 23 July 2003, Amu's house in Jhalokati District was vandalized by Bangladesh Nationalist Party activists who destroyed the boundary, door, and windows of the house.[7] In December 2003, he failed to address a rally in Munshiganj district marking the triennial council of the party due to road blocks by activists of the governing Bangladesh Nationalist Party.[8]

Amu was injured in the August 2004 Dhaka grenade attack which was an attempted assassination of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at a rally of the Awami League.[9]

When party president Sheikh Hasina was exiled by the Caretaker government of Bangladesh (2006–08), Amu became one of top leaders who preserved and represented the party in her absence.[10][11] However, he also developed differences with Hasina, criticising her for making a pact with the Islamist Khelafat Majlish party despite the Awami League's policy of secularism, and not discussing it first with other party leaders.[10][11] Sheikh Hasina in turn criticised Amu for appearing supportive of the caretaker government.[10][11] Activists of Awami League opposed to reforms attacked followers of Amu at the party office in September 2007.[12] He was removed from the newly reformed central committee of the Awami League in July 2009.[13]

In 2008, Amu was elected to parliament from Jhalokati-2 as a candidate of the Awami League with 104,444 votes while his nearest rival Israt Sultana Elen Bhutto of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party received 73,851.[14]

Amu was re-elected unopposed in the 2014 general election from Jhalokati-2 after opposition parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, withdrew their candidacies in a boycott of the general election.[15] He was appointed the Minister of Industries at the Third Sheikh Hasina cabinet.[16][17] He was against leasing land of state owned enterprises to private companies.[18]

Amu represented Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the inauguration ceremony of Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, in 2016.[19] In March 2017, a constable of Barisal Metropolitan Police was suspended for taking selfies with Amu while on duty protecting him.[20] In August 2017, he spoke against Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha for his comments against the government in a verdict which scrapped the 16th Amendment to the constitution of Bangladesh.[21]

In 2018, Amu was elected to parliament from Jhalokati-2 as a candidate of the Awami League with 214,937 while his closest rival, Jeba Amina Khan of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, received 5,982.[22] He was not appointed a minister in the Fourth Sheikh Hasina cabinet.[23] In July 2020, Amu was appointed coordinator of the Awami League led 14-Party alliance.[24]

In December 2022, Amu presided over a meeting of the Awami League led 14-Party alliance in which left wing parties in the alliance criticised the Awami League for ignoring their input.[25] Amu reported that the government could not remove Islam as the state religion of Bangladesh due to internal opposition in the Awami League.[26] He is a member of the Advisory Council of the Awami League.[27]

Personal life

Amu was married to Feroza Hossain.[28] Feroza died from cancer while under treatment at Mount Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore on 1 November 2007.[28] They had no children.[29]

References

  1. ↑ Baxter, Craig; Rahman, Syedur (2003). Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh. Scarecrow Press. p. 232. ISBN 978-0-8108-4863-4.
  2. ↑ "List of 11th Parliament Members". Bangladesh Parliament. 10 January 2019. Archived from the original on 10 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  3. ↑ "Press Information Department (PID), Government of Bangladesh". pressinform.portal.gov.bd. Archived from the original on 13 March 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  4. ↑ Staff Correspondent; bdnews24.com. "Amir Hossain Amu named coordinator of Awami League-led 14-party alliance". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 4 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Minister's profile". Ministry of Industries, Government of Bangladesh. 8 February 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Parliament Election Result of 1991,1996,2001Bangladesh Election Information and Statistics". 29 December 2008. Archived from the original on 29 December 2008. Retrieved 6 June 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ↑ "Amu's residence damaged by JCD, Jubo Dal men". archive.thedailystar.net. The Daily Star. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  8. ↑ "BNP men's attack foils AL's Munshiganj council". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  9. ↑ "Assassination attempt on Hasina". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 "Hasina, Amu trade blames". New Age Bangladesh. 24 June 2007. Archived from the original on 10 April 2008. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
  11. 1 2 3 "Hasina warns of plot against AL". New Age Bangladesh. 24 June 2007. Archived from the original on 10 April 2008. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
  12. ↑ Staff Correspondent (13 September 2007). "Amu-led leaders face party workers' wrath". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  13. ↑ Liton, Shakhawat; Tusher, Hasan Jahid (30 July 2009). "Veterans vetted out of AL leadership". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  14. ↑ "Bangladesh Parliament Election - Detail Results - Amar Desh Online". Amar Desh. 8 February 2018. Archived from the original on 23 March 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  15. ↑ "New Age – AL closer to majority before voting". 16 February 2018. Archived from the original on 16 February 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  16. ↑ Staff Correspondent. "Industries Minister Amu backs secretary on blaming 'vested quarter' for deaths of Santals". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  17. ↑ "Dhaka keen to do business with India: Industries Minister Amu". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  18. ↑ "Amu rules out leasing of govt lands". The Daily Star. 28 December 2015. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  19. ↑ Report, Star (28 May 2016). "Mamata invites Hasina". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  20. ↑ "Cop suspended for taking selfie with minister". The Daily Star. 4 March 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  21. ↑ Report, Star Online (24 August 2017). "Expunge comments against country or face public wrath, Amu asks CJ". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  22. ↑ "Jhalokathi-2 - Constituency detail of Bangladesh General Election 2018". The Daily Star. 25 November 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  23. ↑ "The AL big shots dropped". The Daily Star. 6 January 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  24. ↑ UNB, Dhaka (8 July 2020). "Amu made coordinator of 14-party alliance". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  25. ↑ Bhattacharjee, Partha Pratim (9 December 2022). "AL under fire from allies". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  26. ↑ Staff Correspondent (14 August 2022). "Faced veto for trying to exclude state religion: Amu". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  27. ↑ "In 1979 Sheikh Rehana first made global call for trial of Bangabandhu's killers: Speakers". The Daily Star. 11 May 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  28. 1 2 Unb, Dhaka (2 November 2007). "Amu's wife Feroza passes away". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  29. ↑ Report, Star Digital (28 July 2021). "DSA case: HC refuses bail to Jhalakathi BCL man". The Daily Star. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
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