by Mizanur Rahman :

The ink has dried, the pages closed,
The scholar’s journey now disclosed.
…

A universe they explored inside.
The answers sought, the truths revealed,
A legacy they left sealed.
No more the quest, the endless search,
But in our hearts, their name will perch.

THIS name is none but emeritus professor of political science of Rowan University, New Jersey, Dr Muhammad Rashidzuzzman, who breathed his last on May 21, 2025, in his residence at Glassboro, New Jersey, at the age of 89, due to old-age complication.

Professor Rashiduzzaman was born to Moulavi Badruzzaman and Barandaj Akhter Zaman of Vadarthi at Kaliganj in Gazipur in 1936 during the British colonial era. He was the eldest among his 10 siblings. His father became a schoolteacher after he had graduated with a BA (honours) degree from the then Jaganath College, Dhaka, in 1918, before becoming a headteacher at Kalijang High English School, when a graduate from a Muslim family was seldom seen in the erstwhile Bengal province in India. Therefore, Rashiduzzaman had an erudite upbringing since his childhood that earned appreciation for knowledge and learning with intellectual stimulation and critical thinking.

Rashiduzzaman attended the University of Dhaka and received his MA degree in political science with distinction in 1957 before joining as a lecturer in the department in 1958. After teaching at the University of Dhaka, he was selected as a Commonwealth scholar to pursue the PhD in political science at Durham University in England in 1961 under the supervision of eminent political scientist Dr Maurice Johnson. On completion of his PhD from Durham in 1964, he joined the University of Dhaka again as a senior lecturer and became the provost of the Jinnah Hall, now Surya Sen Hall, in 1968.

In 1970, he joined the South Asian Institute of Columbia University in New York as a senior visiting fellow. Next in 1974, he started a new position as a teacher of political science in the then Glassboro State College, which was later renamed as Rowan University from where he retired as an emeritus professor in 2014, after teaching for four decades. Despite his retirement, his pursuit of knowledge and imparting knowledge as well as mentorship to other academics remained the same until his death. He was very articulating but soft-spoken, humble and amiable in nature either while having political conversation or advising others for which friends and opponents of different political views liked him.

During his long academic career, he mentored many scholars, published numerous scholarly articles focusing on South Asian politics. He periodically contributed to the Pakistan Observer, later the Bangladesh Observer, the Weekly Holiday and very recently wrote for the New Age in addition to writing for various international news outlets — Eurasia Review, Indian Outlook, etc. Not only that, his interviews have also been published on various South Asian and International news media, including the Voice of America, BBC, etc.

His last appearance was on a YouTube podcast with renowned historian, political analyst, author, Professor Dr Taj Hashmi. In this podcast on March 6, 2025, Dr Hashmi introduced him as an ‘internationally acclaimed political scientist’ for his works. A mentee wrote, ‘I am extremely shocked. He was my mentor. May Allah bless his departed soul.’ Another wrote about his scholarly review, ‘His insightful comments on one of the tables in the book in regards to the negative perceptions about Bangladeshi politicians (Table 7.9, p 158) seem to be so pertinent in today’s contexts of Bangladesh.’

He composed several books on South Asian history, politics and government for which his works has enriched the field of political science. His major works, for which, he will be remembered fopr long is The Central Legislature in British India, 1921-47 (New Edition, New York: Peter Lang, 2019).

His other notable works are as follows (1) Politics and Administration in the Local Councils: A Study of Union and District Councils in East Pakistan (Dhaka: Oxford University Press, 1968), (2) Pakistan: A Study of Government and Politics (Dhaka: Ideal Library, 1967), (3) Politics and Government in the New World (Iowa: Kendal/Hunt Publishing Company, 1993), (4) Identity of a Muslim Family in Colonial Bengal: Between History and Memory (Peter Lang: New York, 2021), and (5) Parties and Politics in East Pakistan, 1947-71: The Political Inheritances of Bangladesh (New York: Peter Lang, 2025).

Dr Rashiduzzaman’s research papers appeared in several journals, including the Asian Survey, Pacific Affairs, Current History, Contemporary South Asia and the Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies.

He had three children — a son and two daughters. His only son, Asif Zaman Deepu, passed away in 2021 at the age of 51. Now, on his passing, he left behind his wife and two daughters, grandchildren with a host of relatives in Bangladesh.

Rashiduzzaman not only contributed to the field of academia but also played a pivotal role in shaping and strengthening North American Bengali diaspora community since his arrival in the late 1960s, when the number of Bengali people could be counted by hand. His contribution to the community will, therefore, be remembered for long.

Mizanur Rahman works as a machine learning researcher.