Manjur Karim Piash (; 1958 – October 13, 2014) popularly known as Piash Karim was a professor, researcher and political commentator with specializations in

political economy Political or comparative economy is a branch of political science and economics studying economic systems (e.g. Marketplace, markets and national economies) and their governance by political systems (e.g. law, institutions, and government). Wi ...

, political sociology,

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

and social theory. After Bangladesh achieved independence, he completed his bachelor's degree from the

University of Dhaka The University of Dhaka (), also known as Dhaka University (DU), is a public university, public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 1921, it is the oldest active university in the country. The University of Dhaka w ...

and went to the US for higher studies. In his long career as a teacher, he taught at the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the M ...

Culver–Stockton College Culver–Stockton College is a private Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian liberal arts college in Canton, Missouri. It was founded as Christian University in 1853 as the first institution west of the Mississippi River chartered sp ...

and

BRAC University BRAC University (, also known as BRACU) is a private research university located in Merul Badda, Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was established in 2001 as a branch of Sir Fazle Hasan Abed's BRAC under the Private University Act 1992. History Sir ...

. Karim had authored several books and journals on nationalism and sociology.

Early life and education

Karim was born in 1958 in Comilla. His father M.A. Karim was a member of the founding committee of the Comilla unit of the

Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...

, and served as the treasurer of the Awami League district unit for a long time. His uncle served as the second

inspector general of police An inspector-general of police is a senior police officer in the police force or police service of several nations. The rank usually refers to the head of a large regional command within a police service, and in many countries refers to the most ...

. Piash Karim received his primary education from Comilla Modern School and secondary education from Comilla Zilla School. He completed his higher secondary education from

Adamjee Cantonment College Adamjee Cantonment College () also known as ACC is an educational institution in Dhaka Cantonment, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The institution was established in 1960 following the ideology of originally renowned public schools of England – Eton and H ...

, Dhaka. Later, Karim obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree from the

. He completed his master's degree and PhD in sociology at

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

after moving to the United States. He was arrested by the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

during the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

of 1971 for distributing leaflets in favour of the freedom movement of Bangladesh.

Career

Karim, after completing his master's degree and PhD, served as a faculty member of two American universities for seventeen years. He joined the

as a faculty member and was promoted to a professor of the university. Later, he worked as a professor at

, Missouri for another few years. In 2007, he returned to Bangladesh and joined

as a professor in the Economics and Social Sciences Department. In

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

, he wrote several articles on nationalist politics, civil society and media activism.

Views

Karim was opposed to the Shahbag protests and criticized the neutrality of the International Crimes Tribunal. As a result, his house was attacked by bombs and death threats were made against him.

Personal life and death

Karim was married to Amena Mohsin, a professor of international relations at the University of Dhaka. His only son lives in Dhaka. On October 13, 2014, he died of cardiac arrest on his way to Square Hospital from his home at the age of 56.

Nobel Laureate The Nobel Prizes (, ) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make outstanding contributions in th ...

and prominent economist

Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...

mourned his sudden death, terming him as a "fearless and principled intellectual". After his death, the Awami League-oriented organizations threatened to desecrate his body if it was brought to the Shaheed Minar.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Karim, Piash 1958 births 2014 deaths University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty People from Homna Upazila University of Dhaka alumni Culver–Stockton College faculty Academic staff of BRAC University Comilla Zilla School alumni Adamjee Cantonment College alumni