Ekushey Padak-winning poet Jahanara Arzu passes away

City Desk :

Renowned poet and litterateur Jahanara Arzu, winner of the Ekushey Padak, breathed her last on Monday, at 1pm in her Gulshan residence.
Born on November 17, 1932, in Manikganj, she was the daughter of Afil Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury and Khodeja Khatun. She completed her early education in Manikganj, followed by graduation and post graduation in Bangla from Eden Mohila College and Dhaka University.
A distinguished poet and editor, Arzu served as the founding editor of Sultana, East Pakistan’s first women’s weekly magazine.
For her contributions to Bengali literature, she received the Ekushey Padak in 1987, Bangladesh’s second-highest civilian honour along with 26 other literary awards.
She was married to former Vice President and Justice A K M Nurul Islam, with whom she had two sons and a daughter.
Her elder son, Md Ashfaqul Islam, is a current High Court Division judge; the younger, Mohammad Jahinul Islam is an engineer; and her only daughter, Minara Zaman, is a teacher.
From 1949, she co-edited publications with poet Sufia Kamal. In 1965, she joined Parikrama, the Writers’ Guild magazine, as joint editor. She also served as chief editor of the TB Association’s fortnightly Health Bulletin and edited the literary magazine Setubondhon.