Sheikh Jamal (28 April 1954 – 15 August 1975) was the second son of Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first president of Bangladesh.

Early life

Jamal was born at Tungipara, Gopalganj on 28 April 1954. He was Mujib's third child out of five. His sister, Sheikh Hasina, would become prime minister of Bangladesh in 1996. Jamal, after a period of studies at BAF Shaheen College Dhaka, finished his matriculation from Dhaka Residential Model College in Dhaka. He passed his HSC from Dhaka College. He learned playing guitar at a music institution and was also a good cricketer.

Career

Detained with his mother and other members of the family at a house in Dhanmondi during the war of Liberation in 1971, Jamal found the means to escape and cross over to a liberated zone, where he joined the struggle to free the country. While a student of Dhaka College, Jamal traveled to Yugoslavia for military training under the auspices of the Yugoslav army. Subsequently, he trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in Great Britain. He joined the Bangladesh Army as a second lieutenant in the East Bengal Regiment.

Death and legacy

He was married to his paternal first cousin Parveen Jamal Rosy (1956–1975) on 17 July 1975. Jamal's father and Rosy's mother were siblings. Jamal and his wife Rosy were killed along with other members of his family (parents, brothers, uncle, sister-in-law) during the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The professional sports club Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club and Sheikh Jamal Stadium in Faridpur town are named after him.