If Justice Habibur Rahman were alive today, he would have been annoyed with the title of this article, because he preferred the name Muhammad Habibur Rahman without the title “Justice.”
The sudden demise of Justice Muhammad Habibur Rahman has been a great loss for the nation. He was regarded as the “conscience keeper” of the nation. He was a prolific writer, a multilinguist, a distinguished historian, a talented chief justice and an able administrator all rolled into one. Whatever position he held, he distinguished himself.
He became chief justice in 1995 and chief adviser of the 1996 caretaker government. During the time of the caretaker government, he skillfully dealt with a delicate situation relating to the attempt of the coup by the army chief when the president dismissed him.
He was born on December 3, 1928 in the village of Jangipur of Murshidabad district, West Bengal. His father was a lawyer. He joined Presidency College in 1947 and passed the intermediate examination, and in 1949, he got a BA degree in history, securing first class first from the Rajshahi University. He took his Master’s degree in history, securing first class first from Dhaka University in 1951.
I first met Habibur Rahman in the early 50s and we knew him as Shelley Bhai. He was senior to us by a few years in the university. He was a tall and thinly built person with a sharp face. No one could miss him. He was VP in the Salimullah Muslim Hall, and he was honest enough to say that as a VP, he could not pass the budget. This demonstrated his modesty, honesty, and integrity.
He was a Bhasha Shainik, and on February 21, 1952, it was he who was the first, with another student, who was courageous enough to break the Section 144. He went to prison for his active involvement in the language movement.
In the early 50s, although he secured first class first in both BA and MA in history, he got into trouble getting employment because of the DIB report. He introduced an innovative way of protest for not securing a job by selling cigarettes at the main gate of the then Dhaka University (now Dhaka Medical College Hospital). When we asked, he used to say: “I have to work for a living.”
The government was embarrassed, and he was awarded a Commonwealth scholarship for higher studies in England. He went to Worcester College of Oxford University and obtained a degree in modern history in 1958 and earned the professional degree of barrister-at-law from the Lincoln’s Inn, London.
At Lincoln’s Inn, I met Shelley Bhai again in 1958, where I was also studying at the same time. Whenever I met him, he used to inform me about the lectures and seminars which I should attend.
We returned to Dhaka from England. He joined Rajshahi University as a history teacher for a few years and returned to the High Court Bar in 1964. We sat on the same table at the High Court Bar and discussed many social and political issues.
At that time, he wrote a small book on Section 32A of the Requisition Act 1952, which was at that time employed by the district commissioners to requisition private lands for “public interest.” The requisition law was complex, and many cases were pending at the High Court. The book was immensely helpful to lawyers, and his analytical views on the ramifications of the law reflected his depth and dimension of legal knowledge.
I left the Bar for the Pakistan Foreign Office in the mid 60s and he continued his law practice at the High Court. He became a justice of the High Court division in 1976. Once or twice, I met him in Islamabad.
Although he was 85, he continued to engage himself in writings and delivering speeches in various seminars until his last day. His thinking was very clear and spot on. He did not mince matters and what he felt and believed, he said unhesitatingly. His remarks were simple on matters which we often ignore.
Recently, at a seminar, speakers discussed their right to vote in the election of January 5, and when he spoke, he mentioned that the right to vote was an important constitutional right, but the right to live under the violent situation of the country came first. He always alerted the audience that what people generally believed in might not be correct.
He had great confidence on the younger generation, and urged them to study with critical thinking. At the last convocation address at the Independent University, he underscored the need for quality of education for the younger generation, and requested the private university to spend adequate funds for research.
His love for Tagore led him to write many thought-provoking books on the great poet. At the same time, he criticised Tagore on social issues. He was deeply religious, and translated in Bengali the verses of the Holy Qur’an. Yet he was strongly against communalism, and believed in a secular Bangladesh.
After our retirement, we became very close. He was modest enough to come to my house and gave me a few books to review, which I did, and he was very happy. He said to me that he did not deserve the accolade which I recorded in my reviews.
He used to call me quite often, and asked for information which I readily provided. Only a fortnight ago, he came to my house and said that he wanted to publish a book of all his speeches and asked me to suggest a title for the book. I told him: “My Thoughts or Observations.” He smiled and said that he wanted a modest title, and not high sounding ones. I was taken aback because of his humility.
He was a remarkable person. Modest, humble, and at the same time firm in his beliefs and convictions. He was so candid in his public speeches that political leaders felt unease. In one of his writings, he considered our hardworking farmers as “ideal persons” who we should follow for proper direction of the nation.
Justice Rahman published about 90 books. He received the Ekushey Padak in 2007, and in 1984, the Bangla Academy Literary award for writings on diverse subjects, from religion, to the constitution, to Tagore and Nazrul.
He has left this mortal world, but has also left a rich legacy for which he will be always remembered. His thoughts and ideas will inspire us, and younger generations for years to come, and he will live among us forever.
He left his wife and three daughters to mourn him. May Allah give them the courage to bear this irreparable loss. May his great soul rest in peace.
