Pran Gopal Datta (born 1 October 1953) is a Bangladeshi physician, university administrator and politician. In September 2021, he won a seat in the

Jatiya Sangsad The Jatiya Sangsad (), often simply referred to as Sangsad and also known as is the unicameral Legislature, legislative body of Bangladesh. The current parliament of Bangladesh contains 350 seats, including 50 seats reserved exclusively for w ...

representing the Comilla-7 constituency in an unopposed by-election. The seat had become vacant after Ali Ashraf died in office in July 2021. Datta was awarded the

Independence Day Award The Independence Award (), formally known as the Independence Day Award or Swadhinata Padak (), is the highest state award given by the government of Bangladesh. Introduced in 1977 by President Ziaur Rahman, this award is bestowed upon Banglade ...

, the highest civilian award in Bangladesh, in 2012 for his contributions to the medical field. He is an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist. He also served as the personal physician to Prime Minister

Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina (''née'' Wazed; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 to August 2024. Premiership of Sheikh Hasina, Her ...

Background and education

Datta was born on 1 October 1953 in Mahichail village, Chandina,

Comilla District Comilla District, officially known as Cumilla District, () is a district located in southeastern Bangladesh. It lies about southeast of Dhaka. Comilla is bordered by Brahmanbaria District, Brahmanbaria and Narayanganj District, Narayanganj dis ...

, the second of seven brothers and sisters. He matriculated from Chandina Pilot High School in 1968 and attended

Comilla Victoria College Comilla Victoria Government College (), mostly known as Comilla Victoria College, is a public college in Comilla, Bangladesh. It is one of the oldest and prestigious colleges in Comilla as well as in the Chittagong division. The higher secondary b ...

. He earned his

MBBS A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

degree at

Chittagong Medical College Chittagong Medical College, abbreviated as CMC is a public university, public medical school, medical college located in Chittagong, Bangladesh. It is the second oldest and second largest medical educational institute and hospital in Bangladesh ...

in 1976, PhD degree from Odessa State Medical University in 1983, and an MSc in audiological medicine from

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

in 1993. Datta has worked with and received training under renowned ENT specialists from all over the world including Hans-Peter Zenner of the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...

. Datta also worked closely with Prof. Armin Löwe of

Heidelberg University Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is Germany's oldest unive ...

for the establishment of Bangladesh's first diagnostic clinic for hearing-impaired children.

Career

Datta regularly provides treatment to his patients at Green Life Hospital. He is a professor in the Department of ENT at

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Bangladesh Medical University (BMU; formerly known as Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, commonly known as PG Hospital) is a graduate medical university in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was established in 1965 as Institute of Postgraduate Medic ...

. He also works as an 'Ear, Nose & Throat Specialist & Head Neck surgeon' in the same organization. Datta has conducted research on

throat cancer Head and neck cancer is a general term encompassing multiple cancers that can develop in the head and neck region. These include cancers of the mouth, tongue, gums and lips ( oral cancer), voice box ( laryngeal), throat ( nasopharyngeal, orophar ...

immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity ...

developmental disabilities Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

, and

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

. Pran Gopal Datta is a regular lecturer for institutions like the

National Defence College (Bangladesh) The National Defence College (abbreviated as NDC) is a self degree awarding state owned institution for the strategic training of civil and military officers and is located in the Mirpur Cantonment in Dhaka, Bangladesh. History The college was ...

, the Bangladesh Institute of Administration and Management, the Judicial Administration Training Institute, the Bangladesh Police Academy, and the

Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD) () started its journey on 27 May 1959 as a Training, Research and Action Research institute in rural development. The founder director of this academy dedicated to the leadership of Akhtar Hameed K ...

. In 2021, he was nominated by the Awami League to contest by-elections for

from Comilla-7 constituency after the death of Ali Ashraf. He was declared the winner of the Cumilla-7 constituency in 2024, but the election was marred by incidents of violence, ballot-stuffing, vote theft, and allegations of electoral irregularities. On August 5, 2024, the Awami League government fell amid widespread political unrest and protests after the state sanctioned killings of protesters nationwide. He has been charged for murder on three separate counts, one of which during the July Revolution, regarding the killing of protestors where he was charged with

. In 2025, Dr. Pran Gopal Datta was mentioned in a Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) report regarding financial transactions linked to the Shuchona Foundation, a non-profit founded by Saima Wazed, daughter of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The foundation received significant donations from major Bangladeshi conglomerates, including S Alam Group, Beximco, and PK Halder, an individual accused of financial embezzlement. According to the report, Dr. Datta made financial contributions to the foundation. However, in November 2024, the BFIU ordered banks to freeze the foundation’s accounts due to suspicious transactions. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) later reported that they could not find the foundation at its registered address in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area.

Bibliography

Books

Pran Gopal Datta has authored numerous books on topics ranging from 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 ...

, to

juvenile delinquency Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is the act of participating in unlawful behavior younger than the statutory age of majority. These acts would be considered crimes if the individuals committing them were older. The term ...

. These include: * Pran Gopal Datta, ''যুবসমাজ ও মূল্যবোধ'' 1st edition, 2021. 80 pages * Pran Gopal Datta, ''পদোন্নতির সাতকাহন'' 1st edition, 2019. 86 pages * Pran Gopal Datta, ''অবিচল সতর্কতা: স্বাধীনতার মূল লক্ষ্য'' 1st edition, 2019. 112 pages * Pran Gopal Datta, ''হৃদয় আমার'' 1st edition, 2017. 175 pages * Pran Gopal Datta, ''আমার যত কথা'' 1st edition, 2015. 136 pages, .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Datta, Pran Gopal 1953 births Living people Bangladeshi Hindus People from Comilla District Politicians from Chittagong Division Comilla Victoria Government College alumni Odesa National Medical University alumni Alumni of the University of Manchester Bangladeshi surgeons Otolaryngologists Awami League politicians Recipients of the Independence Award 11th Jatiya Sangsad members 12th Jatiya Sangsad members Chittagong Medical College alumni Vice-chancellors of Bangladesh Medical University Academic staff of Sir Salimullah Medical College