Senior Supreme Court lawyer and former leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, Barrister Abdur Razzaq, who had urged Jamaat to apologise for its 1971 role, has died.
He breathed his last at 4:30 PM on Sunday at a hospital in Dhaka, confirmed his junior lawyer, Advocate Shishir Monir.
Barrister Razzaq had been undergoing treatment at Ibn Sina Hospital in Dhanmondi for nearly two weeks due to critical illness. In his final days, he was placed on life support.
He previously served as the Assistant Secretary General of Jamaat-e-Islami and was in charge of the party’s legal and international affairs. On December 18, 2013, he left Bangladesh for the United Kingdom. Before that, he was the defencse counsel for top Jamaat leaders accused of crimes against humanity at the International Crimes Tribunal.
While in the UK, Barrister Razzaq resigned from Jamaat-e-Islami on February 15, 2019. Earlier, during his time in Bangladesh, he had urged reforms within the party — particularly advocating for a public apology for its role during the 1971 Liberation War.
Later, on May 2, 2020, he became the chief adviser of a newly formed political party, Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party. However, this affiliation remained undisclosed for a year. Following a shift in Bangladesh’s political landscape, he resigned from that position as well on August 17 last year, citing disagreements with the party in a Whatsapp message.
After 11 years abroad, Barrister Razzaq returned to Bangladesh on December 26, 2024, and resumed his legal practice. On January 6, he was formally welcomed by the Supreme Court Bar Association, where he stated: “I am a courtroom barrister. I want to serve the country through my legal profession. If the rule of law can be established, both political and economic development are possible.”
Barrister Razzaq is survived by two sons and a daughter. Both his sons are also practising barristers at the Supreme Court.
He was born in 1944 in Sheklal village under Mathiura Union of Beanibazar upazila in Sylhet. In 1980, he earned his degree from Lincoln’s Inn in the UK. He practised law in London until November 1985 before returning to Bangladesh, where he was enrolled as a lawyer in 1986.
Barrister Razzaq was enrolled to practice in the High Court in 1988 and in the Appellate Division in 1994. In 2002, he was recognised as a Senior Advocate of the Appellate Division. Earlier, in 1990, he had founded a legal firm named The Law Counsel.