Former minister and veteran Awami League leader Tofail Ahmed has passed away at a hospital in the capital. He was 82.
Speaking to journalists, Mamun Talukdar Sheikh, the elder brother of Tofail Ahmed’s wife, said that the veteran politician breathed his last at around 3:30 pm while undergoing treatment at Square Hospital on Monday.
His wife, Anwara Ahmed, passed away on November 20 last year.
According to relatives and close associates, he had been suffering from several age-related health complications for a long time. He was admitted to Square Hospital in critical condition on September 28 and had remained on life support since then.
On the day of his hospitalization, rumors of his death spread widely on social media. However, doctors later dismissed the claims and clarified his condition.
A distinguished political career
Tofail Ahmed served as a member of Bangladesh’s Parliament nine times, most recently representing the Bhola-1 constituency. He was also a longtime member of the Presidium of the Bangladesh Awami League.
Tofail Ahmed was born on October 22, 1943 in Koralia village of South Dighaldi union under Bhola Sadar Upazila. He was the son of Maulvi Azhar Ali and Fatema Begum. He is survived by his only daughter Dr Taslima Ahmed Zaman Munni.
Academically, he completed his Secondary School Certificate (SSC) from Bhola Government High School in 1960 and his Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) from Government Brojomohun College, Barisal in 1962. He earned a BSc degree in 1964 before completing a master’s degree in Soil Science from University of Dhaka.
Tofail Ahmed began his political journey through the Bangladesh Chhatra League. During his time at the University of Dhaka, he was elected vice-president (VP) of Iqbal Hall,now known as Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haq Hall—for the 1966–67 term.
He later emerged as one of the leading figures of the mass uprising and student movement of 1968–69. As vice-president of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU), he served as convener of the All-Party Students’ Action Committee. The historic 1969 mass uprising ultimately compelled the then Pakistani government to release Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and all other accused in the Agartala Conspiracy Case.
The Central Students’ Action Committee organised a massive public rally at the Racecourse Ground in Dhaka (now Suhrawardy Udyan) on February 23, 1969, to honour Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. At the gathering, attended by hundreds of thousands of people, Tofail Ahmed formally conferred upon Sheikh Mujib the title “Bangabandhu”.
Tofail Ahmed first entered electoral politics in 1970, winning a seat in the National Assembly as a nominee of the Bangladesh Awami League. During Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War, he served as one of the four regional commanders of the Mujib Bahini, a key pro-independence force.
Following the country's independence, he was appointed Political Secretary to Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on January 14, 1972, with the rank of State Minister.
He went on to secure parliamentary victories from his home district of Bhola as an Awami League candidate in the general elections of 1973, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2008, 2014, 2018 and 2024, establishing himself as one of the party’s most enduring political figures.
On June 23, 1996, Tofail Ahmed was appointed Minister for Industries and Commerce in the government led by Sheikh Hasina. He later served two consecutive terms as Commerce Minister from 2013 to 2018.
Throughout his political career, he endured repeated imprisonment for political reasons, including a continuous 33-month jail term beginning in 1975, and was incarcerated numerous times over the decades.