Akshay Kumar Das (; born 1903) was a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

Hindu politician of Pakistan, who served as a representative of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

in both the First and Second Constituent Assemblies, and held multiple ministries across the 1950s in governments formed by different political parties. Saadullah cabinet

Das was born at Sullah,

Sylhet Sylhet (; ) is a Metropolis, metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as o ...

in 1903. He was a lawyer by training, and practiced at the local court before joining politics. In the 1937 Assam Provincial Assembly Elections, he filed his nomination from

Sunamganj Sunamganj (, is a town in the Sylhet Division of northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative headquarters and largest town of Sunamganj District. It is located on the banks of the Surma River, approximately west-northwest of Sylhet, the ...

, a dual-member constituency, from the Constitutionalist Party. Das won the reserved seat, unopposed. In February 1938, he was appointed as the Minister of Law in the Second Ministry of

Muhammed Saadulah Sir Syed Muhammad Saadulla KCIE (; 21 May 1885 – 8 January 1955) was the 1st Prime Minister of Assam in British India from 1937 to 1946. He was also the member of Constituent Assembly of India from 1946 to 1950. Saadulla was knighted the ...

, as Muslim League entered into new coalitions to preserve power. Nonetheless, as the government fell in September with Congress poaching off coalition partners, Das switched sides to become the Minister of Excise and Agriculture under the premiership of

Gopinath Bordoloi Gopinath Bordoloi (6 June 1890 – 5 August 1950) was an Indian politician and independence activist who served as the 1st Chief Minister of Assam from 1946 to 1950. He was also the chairman of North-East Frontier Tribal areas and Assam Exclu ...

. In 1939, with Congress governments resigning from across India in protest against United Kingdom's unilateral decision to enroll Indian forces in the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Assam United Party — an amalgamation of Muslim League with all shades of parties opposed to Congress — formed a successful coalition under Saadulah; however, Das was left out from the cabinet. The Government fell again in December 1941 but after about seven months of Governor's Rule, Saadulah managed to regain the numbers; yet again, Das was not inducted. In March 1945, Congress came into an understanding with the League and formed an unprecedented coalition government with virtually no opposition; Das was brought back to the ministry and assigned the portfolios of Industries and Cooperative Development. In the 1946 elections, he was re-elected unopposed but as a member of the Congress. He was subsequently elected by the Assembly to represent Assam at the

Constituent Assembly of India Constituent Assembly of India was partly elected and partly nominated body to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the Provincial assemblies of British India following the Provincial Assembly elections held in 1946 and nominated ...

. Das opposed Partition — unlike many of his Dalit compatriots — and lobbied for the inclusion of Sylhet in India but chose to stay in Pakistan after the referendum went against him, becoming a member of the

Constituent Assembly of Pakistan The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was the supreme federal legislature of the Dominion of Pakistan. It was established in August 1947 with the primary tasks of framing Constitution of Pakistan of 1956, a constitution; and serving as an interim ...

. In Pakistan, he became the President of

East Bengal Scheduled Castes Federation The East Bengal Scheduled Castes Federation (), later the East Pakistan Scheduled Castes Federation (), was a political party in Pakistan. In the first years after the independence of Pakistan, the party was one of the two main political parties of ...

in the aftermath of

Jogendra Nath Mandal Jogendranath Mandal ( Bengali: যোগেন্দ্রনাথ মন্ডল; 29 January 1904 – 5 October 1968) emerged as a prominent figure among the architects of the nascent state of Pakistan. He served as the inaugural Minister of ...

's departure to India (1950) and gained significant political mileage. In the

1954 East Bengal Legislative Assembly election Legislative elections were held in East Bengal between 8 and 12 March 1954, the first since Pakistan became an independent country in 1947. The opposition United Front led by the All-Pakistan Awami League and Krishak Sramik Party won a landslide ...

, Das was re-elected from his seat. In September 1955, he was appointed as the Minister of State for Economic Affairs by Prime Minister

Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhri Muhammad Ali (15 July 1905 – 2 December 1982) was a Pakistani politician and statesman who served as the fourth prime minister of Pakistan from 1955 until his resignation in 1956. His government transitioned Pakistan from a British ...

where he continued until the government fell in September 1956. In October 1957,

I. I. Chundrigar Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar (15 September 1897 – 26 September 1960) was a Pakistani politician who served as the sixth prime minister of Pakistan, appointed in this capacity on 17 October 1957. He resigned due to a Motion of no confidence, vote ...

(from Muslim League) formed government and appointed him as the Minister of State for Caste Affairs but his government fell within 2 months.

Feroz Khan Noon Sir Malik Feroz Khan Noon (7 May 18939 December 1970) , best known as Feroze Khan, was a Pakistani politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Pakistan from 16 December 1957, until being removed when the President Iskandar ...

(Republican Party) formed the next government in December, 1957 and had Das appointed as the Minister of State for Finance.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Das, Akhay Kumar Pakistani MNAs 1947–1954 People from Sullah Upazila Bengali Hindus Pakistani Hindus Politicians from East Pakistan Members of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan Assam MLAs 1937–1946 Assam MLAs 1946–1952 East Bengal MLAs 1947–1954 1903 births Year of death missing Bangladesh National Congress politicians