The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) is deeply saddened by the passing of its Board Member, eminent academic and writer, Professor Syed Manzoorul Islam, Emeritus Professor of English at the University of Dhaka.
Professor Islam was a guardian, mentor, and leader who guided the organisation with profound wisdom and progressive insight. He joined CPD’s Board in 2016 and, since then, had been guiding the CPD family with his thoughtful perspectives on a wide range of issues and through his active participation in several dialogues. His passing marks the end of a remarkable life devoted to teaching, writing, and cultural engagement. The CPD family expresses its heartfelt condolences to the members of his bereaved family.
Professor Islam was one of Bangladesh’s most revered academics and literary figures — a teacher, critic, art historian, and award-winning fiction writer. Alongside his long and distinguished association with the University of Dhaka, he also taught at the Department of English and Humanities at BRAC University.
His teaching and writings spanned diverse areas including Elizabethan drama, literary theory, and cultural studies. Throughout his illustrious career, he remained deeply engaged with Bangladesh’s social, political, and cultural life, writing regularly for national dailies and advocating for quality education, social justice, and mobility.
His contributions to Bangla literature earned him the Bangla Academy Award (1996), the Prothom Alo Book of the Year Award (2005), and the Kagaj Sahitya Puraskar (2006). His creative and intellectual legacy will continue to inspire generations of readers, scholars, and students.
May his departed soul rest in eternal peace.
