The New Nation - Internet Edition

Ameer Hamzah

Begum Rokeya, the harbinger of education for women in Bengal was born in the district of Rangpur in a village under Pairaband Union in 1880 on the 9th December. Her father Zahiruddin Mohammad Abu Ali Haider Saber was very conservative in character and prohibited the learning of Bengali and English. But Rokeya had a thirst for knowledge and it was her eldest brother who taught her Bengali and English at dead of night when every one used to remain in the deep sleep.

Roakeya was given married to a nearly old man Syed Sakhawat Hossain (40), Deputy Magistrate by profession, in the year 1897. As Sakhawat was himself a learner, she patronized his wife's craving for knowledge and gave all out supports. However, Rokeya's marriage life was short-lived and Sakhawat died on the 5th May 1909 at Bhagalpur, Bihar, India.

The death of Sakhawat saddened her very much and she was thinking how to overcome seclusion.

Just then a hadith of the Prophet (SM), 'it is compulsory on every man and woman to learn,' rescued her from melancholy. This sayings helped her understand the inevitability of learning and she opened a school at Bhagalpur with just five students but could not stay there for long due to misbehavior of her father in law's family members.

Rokeya returned to Calcutta, West Bengal a year later and floated a girl's school on March 15 1911 on Taltala Waliullah Lane. The name of the school was Sakhawat Memorial Girls School. Rokeya's school is recognised as the first permanent school for girls in Bengal as two more schools which were opened in 1980, lasted for a very short period.

In the field of education, Begum Rokeya received inspiration from Maulana Mohammad Ali, Sher-e-Bangla A.K.Fazlul Haque, Justice Syed Sharfuddin and others like them.

During those days, it was very hard to get female students at school because the guardians did not like their female members to go out of houses. So, Rokeya had to move from pillar to post and post to pillar to convince the guardians to send their daughters/sisters to her school. In doing this noble job, a section of the society often abused her with the filthy languages. But she was not a woman to retreat. She continued to surge ahead and it is due to her tireless efforts and sincerity, the school was upgraded to Junior Girls High School in 1917 and to High English Girls School in 1931, a year before her death.

In 1916, she established a socio-cultural organisation named Anzuman Khanetun-e-Islam having the objective of assisting the destitute women to survive and to become self-independent financially. She was out and out a Muslim by faith and deed. She never uncovered her head and hand and avoided discourse. At the same time, she disliked superstition and ignorance and to keep women confined in houses. This great lady died in the year 1932 on the 9th December.

Begum Rokeya wrote several books. Those are Aborodhbasini published in 1931, Sultana's Dream in 1922, Ardhangini, Motichur in (Vol 1 1904, Vol II 1922, Padyarag in 1926.