Mohan Mia: A politician of exceptional qualities

In remembering Yusuf Ali Choudhury, popularly known as Mohan Mia, one is struck by the fact that since his death on November 26, 1971 at the age of 66, there has not appeared in our political scene another kingmaker so honest and trustworthy and yet totally devoid of any greed for office or profit. For several decades, he was a very influential politician of East Pakistan but he always preferred to keep himself away from the limelight. To him, principles and service to the people were more important than power and wealth. He proved it over a considerable period of his active political life.
Mohan Mia was born in an aristocratic zaminder family of Faridpur and became well known for his philanthropy. He promoted education among the Muslims who suffered due to their backwardness. Among many educational institutions he founded were Moizuddin High School, Halima Students' Home and Halima Girls School to commemorate his parents. The Students' Home, created in 1926, was a unique boarding house in which meritorious students enjoyed free residence under the care and supervision of a reputed teacher. This writer had the privilege of living in this home for two years in the 1940s and he can confidently say the lessons of discipline and service to follow students he learnt there forever helped shape his way of life. Many students of this hostel later distinguished themselves in various fields of activities.
Another unique installations set up by Mohan Mia in 1945 was the Baitul Aman on the outskirts of Faridpur town. For this multipurpose agricultural, industrial and educational project, Mohan Mia and his two brothers, Moazzem Husain Chowdhury (Lal Mia) and Enayet Husain Chowdhury (Tara Mia) donated 500 bighas of land. The primary purpose of this pioneering project has been to train up students in technology and crafts to stand on their own feet and set examples of self-supportive initiatives in income generation and social welfare.
In founding the Baitul Aman, Mohan Mia demonstrated a vision of social uplift rarely seen in those days. He believed in building institutions to promote social welfare and mitigate sufferings among the disadvantaged group of people. In many ways, he was far ahead of the work of today's NGOs. He demonstrated similar vision and initiative as a distinguished chairman of the Faridpur District Board for 15 years. He initiated many institutions to promote education, facilitate communication and provide health services to people. The people of greater Faridpur remember him as an incompatible person always ready to spend his own money to advance a good cause of public welfare. His close associates say he never drew any travelling allowance from the District Board.
He was a very accessible and amiable person and never hesitated to help the needy. In fact, his open-handedness in supporting worthy persons politically and other causes at times put him in financial crisis. In running his zamidery, he was most humane to the tenants and broke the tradition of other zaminders by allowing them to approach him as a respected person. He was a democrat per se and never discriminated against people on social or religious ground. In the 1940s, he succeeded in keeping Faridpur free from communal disharmony although rest of British India suffered the worst kind of communal violence. Both Hindus and Muslims admired him for this non-communal attitude.
Mohan Mia entered national politics under the leadership of Sher-e- Bangla AK Fazlul Huq as a member of the Krishak Praja Party. Following the election of 1937, Fazlul Huq formed the government in Bengal in coalition with the Muslim League. But when in 1941 he severed ties with the Muslim League, Mohan Mia stayed on in the League and played a significant role in the party. From 1940 to 1957, he was the general secretary of the Faridpur Muslim League. After the birth of Pakistan, he was for a while the general secretary of the East Pakistan Muslim League. But he left the party forever when he found that its high command did not support the popular demand of the people for an honourable place for Bangla as a state language of Pakistan. He also fought vigorously to secure the rights of the people of East Pakistan. As everyone knows, it was an issue of these rights that the Bangalees had ultimately to wage a war of liberation and establish a separate sovereign country.
Mohan Mia did not see the formal birth of Bangladesh but the intensity of the liberation war convinced him beyond doubt that the emergence of an independent state was imminent. This was so especially after his ceaseless efforts failed to arrange transfer of power to the majority party Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's Awami League following its landslide victory in the 1970 election. It became clear to him that the military rulers of Pakistan were prepared to dismember their country rather than share power with the majority people of the eastern wing.
This scribe knew Mohan Mia well and used to meet him often in Karachi when he went there to attend the parliament sessions. He knew he was from Faridpur and had lived in the Halima Students' Home as a scholar. He endearingly used to enquire about this writer's career and his family and was obviously pleased to know that he had benefited from his stay at the Home. All wish we have many more dedicated and honest personalities like him to lift Bangladesh out of today's quagmire.