Dulai Zamindari

Dulai Zamindari
Alternative names	Azim Choudhury Zamindar Bari
General information
Type	Residence
Location	Sujanagar Upazila
Address	Dulai
Town or city	Sujanagar Upazila, Pabna District
Country	Bangladesh
Opening	1700s
Owner	Rahimuddin Chowdhury
Technical details
Material	Brick, stone and rod

Part of a series on
Zamindars of Bengal
Central Bengal (Dhaka Division and Mymensingh Division)
Bhawal Dhaka Baliati Zamindari Muktagacha Dhanbari Karatia Susanga Atharabari Dhankora Gauripur Teota Santosh
Eastern Bengal (Chittagong Division and Sylhet Division)
Baniachong Laksham Prithimpassa Chakma Bohmong Mong
Northern Bengal (Rangpur Division and Rajshahi Division)
Puthia Rajshahi (Natore) Dighapatia Singranatore Rangpur Pabna
Southern Bengal (Barishal Division, Khulna Division and Faridpur Division)
Naruttampur Narail Naldanga Padamdi Kirtipasha
Western Bengal
Azimganj Burdwan Nadia Nashipur Murshidabad Panchkot Sovabazar Serampur Jhargram Khanyan Andul Dhanyakuria Uttarpara Bansberia Surul Hetampur Bally Shibpur Taki Baruipur Mahisadal Narajole Gobardanga

The Dulai Zamindari (Bengali: দুলাই জমিদারী) is a historic estate and Bengali family based in the village of Dulai in Sujanagar, Pabna District.

History

আমি ও পটু মিয়া চাচা বাড়ি থাকি।
ami o pôtu miya chacha bari thaki
মছজেদে পড়িয়া কত হইয়াছি সুখী॥
môsjede pôriya kôtô hôiyasi shukhi
লতিফুল্লা মিয়া সঙ্গে থাকিয়া হামেসা।
lôtifulla miya shonge thakiya hamesha
চৌধুরী আজিমের কত পাইয়াছি ভালোবাসা॥
choudhuri azimer kôtô paiyasi bhalobasha

 – Azim Chowdhury written by Haji Badruddin in 1298 A.H. (1880-1881 CE).

Sharfuddin Sarkar and Rahimuddin Chowdhury

The zamindar palace was established 250 years ago in the village of Dulai, Sujanagar, Pabna by a Muslim aristocrat known as Munshi Rahimuddin Sarkar (1722-1815). His father, Sharfuddin Sarkar, settled in Dulai (Ahladipur village), after migrating from Samarkand in Turkestan. Rahimuddin was the serestadar and peshkar (deputy minister) at the Rajshahi Collectorate Office in Natore, and was a munshi proficient in Arabic and Persian. He was later bestowed the title of Chowdhury. In 1802, he built a mosque in the estate which still exists today.

Azim Chowdhury

The zamindari gained repute under his son and successor, Fakhruddin Ahle Ahsan Azim Chowdhury (1790-1880), also known as Moulvi Azimuddin Chowdhury or simply Azim Chowdhury. He established three indigo factories in Dulai and was well-known for his charity work too. The Dulai dispensary, according to William Wilson Hunter in A Statistical Account of Bengal, was "entirely supported" by Azim Chowdhury. It was established in October 1867 and was one of the three dispensaries in Pabna District at the time. The zamindar palace was of two storeys, and has many doors and eleven gates. The estate is surrounded by a large reservoir, and there are two ponds, in the zamindar palace and inner quarters respectively. For the safety of the estate, two elephants and cannon were stationed at the entrance.

It is said that there was another zamindar family in Sujanagar, who belonged to the Hindu faith, led by Vijaya Govinda Chaudhury in Tantiband village. The two families initially had good relations with each other. However, during the Sepoy Revolt in 1857, Azim Chowdhury directly and indirectly assisted the native rebels. On the other hand, Vijaya Govinda Chaudhury assisted the British East India Company in suppressing the revolt. This broke the friendship between the two zamindar families. The British government labelled Azim Chowdhury a rebel for not paying taxes and sent armed forces to bring an end to him. His great defiance was dealt with by the British Lieutenant-Governor in great length. Azim Chowdhury was defeated, but managed to flee through the tunnel of his palace. He subsequently took a barge (boat) to the French establishment of Chandernagor near Calcutta where he sought refuge. He returned to Pabna after 15 to 20 years, where he spent the rest of his life in the Dilalpur neighbourhood of Pabna city. His grave is still preserved in his home next to the Pabna city's fire brigade.

Later descendants

Azim Chowdhury had four wives. The first was childless and the second died without any children. Considering his third wife to be incapable of having children, Chowdhury accepted another wife. Fortunately, both the third and fourth wife gave birth to sons: Ahmad Jan Chowdhury and Haydar Jan Chowdhury. The former and his mother died during the lifetime of Azim Chowdhury, leaving behind a son named Rahmat Jan Chowdhury, but he was unable to inherit Azim's wealth as it was not in line with Islamic inheritance jurisprudence. Ahmad Jan's wife, now a widow, returned to the home of her father, the Zamindar of Khanpur in Gopalganj, along with her child Rahmat Jan Chowdhury. As she was the only daughter of the zamindar, Rahmat Jan Chowdhury later became the Zamindar of Khanpur. He grew up to have three sons:

1. Said Jan Chowdhury (d. 1984). He was a civil servant and married a woman from the Zamindar family of Ulania. He had three sons and five daughters: Sarwar Jan Chowdhury, Mohabbat Jan Chowdhury, Mahmud Jan Chowdhury, Amina Khan (migrated to London), Sultana Chowdhury, Salma Bhuiyan (migrated to America), Ruqayyah Chowdhury and Jahanara Chowdhury (migrated to Dhaka).
2. Latif Jan Chowdhury. He married Kamrunnessa, the daughter of Husayn Jan Chowdhury of Dulai. They had five sons and three daughters: Shawkat Jan Chowdhury, Hayat Jan Chowdhury, Dawlat Jan Chowdhury, Dawud Jan Chowdhury, Saud Jan Chowdhury, Jahanara Chowdhury and Shahnara Chowdhury.
3. Muhammad Jan Chowdhury. He married a daughter of the Zamindar family of Deuli in Barisal. He had six sons and four daughters: Rawnaq-ul-Bayat Gawhar-e-Azam (migrated to Faridpur), Enam Mashrafi (migrated to Canada), Mizanul Mawla (migrated to America), Siratul Mustaqim (migrated to Canada), Taslim Jan Chowdhury (migrated to America), Chowdhury Arzu Karim, Warzufil Akram (migrated to Faridpur), Ferdousi Jamila (migrated to Canada) and Jannati Tahera (migrated to Dhaka).

Azim Chowdhury's other son, Haydar Jan Chowdhury, married Syeda Sharifunnessa, daughter of Zamindar Syed Fazle of Padnadia in Faridpur. He also married an Indian Muslim woman from Lucknow with whom he had a daughter named Munnu Jan, who died prematurely. With his first wife, Haydar had three sons who continued to stay in Dilalpur. He had six daughters including Nurunnahar Begum, Jahanara Abdullah, Kamrunnessa Chowdhurani, Rizia Begum and Delwara Chowdhury. His sons are:

1. Husayn Jan Chowdhury. He married three times. With his second wife, he had Ghulam Haydar Abu Dawud Chowdhury, Ghulam Mustafa Chowdhury, Ghulam Rahman Chowdhury, Ghulam Qadir Chowdhury and Ghulam Subhan Chowdhury. He had five sons with his third wife: Rawshan Jan Chowdhury, Muhsin Jan Chowdhury, Sarwar Jan Chowdhury, Mahbub Jan Chowdhury and Rafiq Jan Chowdhury.
   1. Abdus Sobhan Chowdhury was Husayn's only son from his first wife. He had one son, Haybat Jan Chowdhury, who was a Group Captain for the Bangladesh Air Force.
   2. Rawshan Jan Chowdhury (1917-2011) had four sons and four daughters: Ahsan Jan Chowdhury (marine engineer), Ahmad Jan Chowdhury, Asad Jan Chowdhury, Ershad Jan Chowdhury (retired former Navy Commander), Afifa Zaman, Afsana Zaman, Farhana Chowdhury and Nazli Chowdhury. It is his descendants who are preserving the Dulai Zamindari estate and heirlooms.
   3. Muhsin Jan Chowdhury had two sons and three daughters: Raju Chowdhury, Anwar Chowdhury, Shamim Ara Chowdhury, Nasim Ara Chowdhury and Shahin Ara Chowdhury.
   4. Sarwar Jan Chowdhury had one daughter, Nina Chowdhury.
   5. Mahbub Jan Chowdhury had three sons and one daughter: Mushtaq Jan Chowdhury, Ahmad Jan Chowdhury, Muin Jan Chowdhury and Chowdhury Mahbuba Momtaz.
   6. Rafiq Jan Chowdhury had three sons and two daughters: Raqib Jan Chowdhury, Liaqat Jan Chowdhury, Shafiq Jan Chowdhury, Ruksana Nasrin Chowdhury and Jhumu Chowdhury.
2. Fasiuddin Abdul Ghani Chowdhury. He had two sons with his first wife, Rahimuddin Chowdhury and Alauddin Chowdhury, and three sons with his second wife, Salehuddin Chowdhury, Badruddin Chowdhury and Kamal Pasha Chowdhury.
   1. Rahimuddin Chowdhury. He had three sons and three daughters.
   2. Alauddin Chowdhury. He had two sons.
   3. Salehuddin Chowdhury. He had one son and three daughters.
   4. Badruddin Chowdhury. He had two sons.
3. Abdul Basit Chowdhury. He had four sons with his first wife, Abu Naser Chowdhury, Nurul Huda Chowdhury, Abdur Rahman Chowdhury and Abdul Jabbar Chowdhury. With his second wife, he had two sons and three daughters: Khwaja Akhtaruzzaman Chowdhury, Azimuddin Chowdhury, Basirunnessa Chowdhury, Sharifunnessa Chowdhury Munni and Khadijah Khatun.
   1. Sharifunnessa Chowdhury Munni. In 1950, Munni passed her B.A. from Govt. Edward College and M.A. from the University of Rajshahi. She married and moved to London and was an author. She wrote the Probashe Sofore poem and was awarded by Queen Elizabeth II after dedicating a poem to her during the Silver Jubilee in 1977.
   2. Khwaja Akhtaruzzaman Chowdhury. He had three sons and two daughters: Khwaja Aminuzzaman Chowdhury, Khwaja Kamruzzaman Chowdhury, Khwaja Nuruzzaman Chowdhury, Jannatul Ashrafi and one other.
   3. Azimuddin Chowdhury (1941-2013) had three daughters: Anita Chowdhury, Ivana Chowdhury and Azima Chowdhury.
   4. Khadijah Khatun married Khan Bahadur Abdur Rahman Khan in May 1929 after the death of his childless first wife Shahidah Khatun in February 1917. The couple had two sons and one daughter: Dr Fazlur Rahman Khan, Dr Zillur Rahman Khan and Masuda Khan Leena. Leena married A.Z.M. Enayetullah Khan in 1962.

Later history

On behalf of the National Mohammedan Association, the opening assembly of Pabna Zilla School's Muslim Boarding was held on 11 January 1899. The construction of that student hall was primarily funded by the three brother-Zamindars of Dulai (Husayn Jan Chowdhury, Fasiuddin Abdul Ghani Chowdhury and Abdul Basit Chowdhury). Hasan Jan Chowdhury was among the few Muslim zamindars (including Abdul Hamid Qurayshi and Mawlana Abdul Ghafur) that protected Jogendranath Maitra from the poor masses in the national movement when his own community did not support him.

At present, this zamindar house is in ruins, although it is currently being maintained by the descendants of this zamindar house. In fact, after the abolition of the zamindari system through the East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950, it became subordinate to the government. Later, the descendants of this zamindar house, like Faruq Husayn Chowdhury and Ahsan Jan Chowdhury, got this estate back in 1994 through a long legal process. Since then they have been in charge of the maintenance of this palace.

See also

• Naimuddin
• Zamindars of Mahipur

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