Tofail Ahmed (born 22 October 1943) is a Bangladeshi politician. He is a 7-term

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 ...

member representing the Bhola-1, Bhola-2 and Bakerganj-1 constituencies during 1973–2024. Previously he served as the Minister of Commerce and Minister of Industries of the

Government of Bangladesh The government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh () is the central government of Bangladesh. The government was constituted by the Constitution of Bangladesh comprising the executive (the president, prime minister and cabinet), the ...

Early life and education

Ahmed was born on 22 October 1943 to

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

parents Moulvi Azhar Ali and Fatema Begum in the village of Koralia in

Bhola Island Bhola Island (also called Dakhin Shahbazpur) is the largest island of Bangladesh with an area of and a coastline of . It accounts for most of the land area of Bhola District in Barisal Division. Geography It is situated at the mouth of the M ...

, then a part of the

Backergunge District Backergunge, Backergunje, Bakarganj, or Bakerganj is a former district of British Bengal, East Pakistan and Bangladesh. It was the southernmost district of the Dacca Division. The district was located in the swampy lowlands of the vast river delta ...

of the

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

in a very poor family. Ahmed studied at the Bhola Government High School until 1960 and then at the

Brojomohun College Govt. Brojomohun College, Barishal, commonly known as BM College, is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Bangladesh. It is located in the city of Barishal in south-western Bangladesh. History On June 14, 1889, Ashwini Kumar Dut ...

until 1962. He graduated from the

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

with a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

Soil science Soil science is the study of soil as a natural resource on the surface of the Earth including soil formation, soil classification, classification and Soil survey, mapping; Soil physics, physical, Soil chemistry, chemical, Soil biology, biologica ...

Career

Ahmed joined 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 in support of the 1966 Six point movement of

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), also known by the honorific Bangabandhu, was a Bangladeshi politician, revolutionary, statesman and activist who was the founding president of Bangladesh. As the leader of Bangl ...

. was involved in the 1969 mass uprising in East Pakistan as a student leader. He was the vice-president of

Dhaka University Central Students' Union Dhaka University Central Students' Union (), also known by its acronym DUCSU, is the official students' union of the University of Dhaka. Called the second Parliament of Bangladesh, parliament of Bangladesh, DUCSU represents Dhaka University stude ...

. In 1970, Ahmed was a political secretary of

. He was a Bangladesh independence activist one of the organizers of Mujib Bahini 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 ...

in 1971. After the

15 August 1975 Bangladeshi coup d'état The Coup d'état, military coup in Bangladesh on August 15 of 1975 was launched by mid-ranking army officers in order to Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, assassinate founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, whose administration post-inde ...

and the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Ahmed was detained by the military administration. His Assistant Personal Secretary, Mintu, was tortured to death in custody. In 1996, prior to the controversial February elections, Ahmed was arrested along with

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami is the largest Islamist political party in Bangladesh. The origin of the party can be traced back to the original faction founded by Sayyid Abul A'la Maududi in 1941. The predecessor of Jamaat which is known as Ja ...

leader Abdul Quader Mollah under the Special Powers Act. He served as the Minister of Commerce in the Awami League government from July 1996 to January 2001. In 2007, while the country went under emergency rule Ahmed was one of the leaders who proposed a reform proposal of

Bangladesh 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 ...

which proposed by the military backed caretaker government and the removal of party chief

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 ...

. After the 2008 general election Awami League formed the government, but Ahmed was dropped from the cabinet despite being one of the influential members of Presidium. Ahmed was the chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Industries Ministry. He is also the member of the advisory committee of the Awami League. Earlier he was one of the influential members of the Awami League presidium. He was elected several times as a member of Jatiya Sangsad from Bhola constituency. He was the

Minister of Commerce A Commerce minister (sometimes business minister, industry minister, trade minister or international trade minister) is a position in many governments that is responsible for regulating external trade and promoting economic growth (commercial poli ...

. Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina led Awami League government, Ahmed's home in Bhola was burned down and vandalized in February 2025.

Personal life

Ahmed married Anwara Begum, daughter of Mafizul Haq Taluqdar of Dania, in 1964. They have one daughter, Taslima Ahmed Zaman Munni, who is a doctor. Their son-in-law is Tauhiduzzaman Tuhin, a cardiologist at

Square Hospital Square Hospital is a private hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is one of three high-end private hospital in Bangladesh, the other being Evercare Hospital Dhaka and United Hospital, Dhaka. Tapan Chowdhury is the managing director of the hospit ...

References