Hasan family
The Hasan Family also spelled Hassan, is an esteemed Bangladeshi family, who have contributed exceptionally to South Asian politics and various social movements for nearly four-hundred years. The seat of this Zamindar family is located in Baniachang, Sylhet near the town of Habiganj. The family is one of the remaining remnants of the nobility of the Mughal Court to exist in Bangladesh, with their ancient home still intact.[1]
History
According to legend, the first known Hasan was sent to Bengal by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir around 1627. The family migrated from Murshidabad to East Bengal to where the family's patriarch, Anis Ul Hasan married into a family in Baniachong, Sylhet.
Rise to Prominence
Anis Ul Hasan died at an early age, and his son Obaid Ul Hasan went to Calcutta in search of fortune. There he became a leading scholar of Persian. The Nizam of Hyderabad learned of Obaid Ul Hasan and appointed him Vizier and as a tutor to the crowned prince. The Monarch bestowed great riches to the Hasan family, allowing for the purchase of massive tracks of land in what is today the Habiganj District of Bangladesh; thus establishing the Zamindari status of the family. Due to various economic and political upheaval, the land ownership of the Hasan's drastically reduced. Following disintegration of what was then East Pakistan, the new socialist-leaning Bangladeshi State abolished the feudal Zamindari system, thus removing any "official" rights attached to the family's status as Zamindars.
Notable Members
- Obaid Ul Hasan: Grand Vizier to the Nizam of Hyderabad.
- Syedul Hasan: Leftist activist, allegedly killed by Pakistani Army for protecting Hindu families during Bangladesh's War of Liberation.
- Sir Fazle Hasan Abed: Founder and Chairman of BRAC, the world's largest international development NGO
- Manzoor Hasan: Celebrated barrister ( lawyer ) and activist. Awarded Order of the British Empire for his role in combatting corruption in Bangladesh.
- Meheriar Munim Hasan: Founder and CEO of Terafina Inc. Former Executive Vice President of US Bank Corporation. Highest ranked Bangladeshi bank executive outside of Bangladesh.
- Tamara Hasan Abed: Celebrated British-Bangladeshi business leader.