Nawab Sir Khwaja Ahsanullah, the third Nawab of Dhaka and a noted philanthropist, donated generously to various charitable projects and extended financial support to creating an Engineering College in Dhaka. He was also an ardent advocate for Muslims.
Historically speaking, the members of the Nawab family had played an important role in the social, cultural, economic and political development of Dhaka as the preeminent capital of East Bengal. It is an undeniable historical fact that of all the members of the Nawab family, three of them proved to be most powerful and influential. These three personalities were Nawab Sir Abdul Ghani, Nawab Sir Ahsanullah and Nawab Sir Salimullah.
Nawab Sir Khwaja Ahsanullah Bahadur (1848-1901) of Dhaka, 1888. Writer’s collection. Artist’s rendition: Johnston & Hoffmann, Calcutta
It is on account of their wide-ranging social, cultural, economic, philanthropic and political contribution to the development of a vibrant and thriving Islamic identity and culture in East Bengal that all three of them have been included in this book. As one of the main founders of the Dhaka Nawab family, Nawab Sir Abdul Ghani was undoubtedly one of the most wealthiest and influential Muslim leaders of the nineteenth century.
In addition to being an outstanding businessman and landholder (Zamindar), he became a very generous patron of learning, culture and economic development in East Bengal. Only two decades after his death, his grandson, Nawab Sir Salimullah, became one of the most influential Muslim political figures of not only East Bengal but also of the subcontinent. As the chief architect and organiser of the All-India Muslim League (AIML), Nawab Sir Salimullah should be recognised as one of the founders of Pakistan and, by extension, that of Bangladesh.
In other words, if Nawab Sir Abdul Ghani became a great benefactor of the Muslims of Bengal, then Nawab Sir Salimullah was undoubtedly the most outstanding and patriotic Muslim leaders to have hailed from Bengal. Building on the work of his illustrious father, and paving the way for his influential son, was none other than Nawab Sir Ahsanullah, who by the dint of his sublime personal qualities, attributes and skills, became one of the most impressive Muslim personalities of nineteenth century Bengal.
Nawab Sir Ahsanullah Khan Bahadur was born in Dhaka into one of the most wealthiest and famous Muslim families of East Bengal………..
Read the biographical entry in THE MUSLIM HERITAGE OF BENGAL: The Lives, Thoughts and Achievements of Forty Great Muslim Scholars, Writers and Reformers of Bangladesh and West Bengal by Muhammad Mojlum Khan
Khwaja Ahsanullah
Khwaja Ahsanullah