A. S. Mahmud
A. S. Mahmud, born Abu Sayeed Mahmud,[1] was a Bangladeshi businessman and founder of Ekushey Television who was forced to leave Bangladesh after the closure of his channel by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
Early life
[edit]Mahmud was born on 10 July 1933 in Sylhet, Assam, British India.[2] He completed his bachelors in economics at the University of Dhaka in 1954.[2]
Career
[edit]Mahmud joined Burmah Oil as an executive.[2] In 1971, he was an executive director of Pakistan State Oil.[2] After the Independence of Bangladesh, Pakistan National Oils was nationalized and renamed Jamuna Oil Company.[2] He moved to London during the Bangladesh Liberation War.[2]
Mahmud left Jamuna Oil Company in 1977 and joined Transcom Group.[3] In 1991, he was appointed a director of Mediaworld Limited and publisher of The Daily Star after the death of S. M. Ali in 1993.[3] He was the Managing Editor of Mediaworld.[4]
Mahmud founded Reliance Insurance Company Limited. He was a director of Infrastructure Development Company.[2] He was the president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry.[2] He was a member of the National Pay Commission of Bangladesh and Industrial Development Council of the World Bank.[2]
Mahmud founded Ekushey Television was launched on 14 April 2000 by A. S. Mahmud, with the "Poribortone Ongikarboddho" (পরিবর্তনে অঙ্গীকারবদ্ধ; lit. 'Committed to change') slogan, which is still used today,[5] as a privately owned nationwide terrestrial television network, the first of its kind in Bangladesh and the region of South Asia in general.[6][1]
In September 2000, two Dhaka University teachers and a pro-BNP journalist filed a suit, alleging that the agreement between Ekushey Television and the government of Bangladesh was unlawful. This claim was denied by the network.[7] On 26 September 2001, Ekushey Television was ordered by the High Court of Bangladesh to temporarily halt broadcasts amid the upcoming general election, as they had ruled that the network had no proper rights to do so. Later, the Supreme Court overturned the order and Ekushey was allowed to resume broadcasting.[8][9]
In March 2002, shortly after the BNP government of Bangladesh took over, the High Court declared that the license issued to Ekushey for broadcasting was "illegal". They were also accused of "unfairly" using the facilities of Bangladesh Television, and for being biased towards the BNP and its Islamist allies, although Ekushey denied those claims and stated that their news programming was not politically aligned and was always neutral.[10][11][12] The judges gave Ekushey ten days to appeal to the Supreme Court, otherwise they would have to cease broadcasts. Supporters of the network argued that Ekushey Television's license was granted by the previous rival Awami League government, and thus became the target of the BNP-led government.[10]
On 29 August 2002, Ekushey Television was forced to cease all broadcasts at 17:00 (BST), with a formal announcement broadcast shortly before its closure, following a verdict from the Supreme Court that the license issued to the network was "illegal", after upholding the High Court's exact declaration and rejecting its appeal. The move to shut Ekushey Television down was protested by the RSF, and many people in Bangladesh gathered outside the court in solidarity with the network.[13] The general-secretary of RSF, Robert Ménard, sent a letter to information minister Tariqul Islam, saying that the closure of ETV was "a dramatic backward step for viewers in Bangladesh".[1]
After Ekushey's closure, the founder of the network, Mahmud, left Bangladesh for England with his family and later died there on 22 January 2004.[1] On 14 April 2005, Ekushey Television, at the time under Abdus Salam's ownership, was granted a license to resume broadcasting using its previous facilities, after applying for it three months before,[14] but were only allowed to do so via satellite television.[15]
Death
[edit]Mahmud died on 22 January 2004 in London, United Kingdom.[1][3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Dring, Simon (2014-01-22). "A.S. Mahmud: A man of vision remembered". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Chowdhury, Reza (22 January 2007). "Dreams never die". The Daily Star. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ a b c "AS Mahmud passes away". The Daily Star. 24 January 2004. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ Khasru, Syed Munir (2011-01-22). "A S Mahmud: A tribute". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ ২২ বছরে একুশে টেলিভিশন. Samakal (in Bengali). 14 April 2021. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
- ^ Chowdhury, Afsan (1999). "Move over BTV". Himal Magazine. Archived from the original on 21 September 2022.
- ^ Pearson, Bryan (29 August 2002). "Ruling takes ETV off airwaves". Variety. Archived from the original on 4 August 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "Blow for Bangladesh broadcaster". BBC News. 26 September 2001. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
- ^ "Reprieve for Bangladesh broadcaster". BBC News. 27 September 2001. Archived from the original on 29 December 2002. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
- ^ a b "Bangladesh TV faces possible closure". BBC News. 27 March 2002. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ "Private Bangladesh TV goes off air". BBC News. 29 August 2002. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ "Bangladesh's Ekushey Television off air as of Thursday". Indian Television. 31 August 2005. Archived from the original on 17 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ "Government closes leading private television station after court withdraws licence". IFEX. 30 August 2002. Archived from the original on 16 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "Ekushey Television re-launch faces uncertainty". BDNews24. 7 July 2005. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
- ^ "ETV gets fresh licence". The Daily Star. 13 April 2005. Retrieved 2 June 2022.