Tearful adieu to Reazuddin Ahmed

Journalists on Sunday bid a tearful adieu to senior journalist Reazuddin Ahmed on the National Press Club premises in Dhaka. Several hundred media workers, former colleagues and friends gathered at the club premises to show their last respect to the Ekushey Padak winning journalist after his mortal remains were brought there around 11am. Ahmed, who was a four-time former president of the club, died of Covid-19 at a city hospital on Saturday at the age of 77.

Apart from journalists, people from different professions, including politicians, also paid homage to the veteran newsman by placing wreaths on his coffin. Wreaths were also placed on his coffins, on behalf of different organisations, including Editors' Council, Editors Guild, BFUJ, DUJ, JPC, DRU and Noab.

Earlier, his first namaz-e-Janaza was also held on the club premises. Gonoshasthya Kendra Founder Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury, Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, former minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (Noab) President AK Azad, Daily Star Editor Mahfuz Anam, Samakal’s Acting Editor Mozammel Hossain, former Press Club presidents Muhammad Shafiqur Rahman, Shawkat Mahmud, Saiful Alam and the club’s general secretary Elias Khan, among others, took part in the janaza.

Ahmed's son Mashroor Riaz said his father's body was flown to his village home in Narsingdi by helicopter. The body will be brought back to Dhaka after another janaza there after Zohur prayers. He was laid to rest next to his mother's grave in Banani Graveyard following a third janaza at Baridhara Central Jam-e-Mosque after Asr prayers. Ahmed was admitted to United Hospital on December 13 with the Covid infections and lost the battle against the deadly virus. He was awarded Ekushey Padak in 1993 for journalism.  Born on November 30, 1945, at Narandi village in Narsingdi, Ahmed completed his post-graduation in economics in 1967 and attained an LLB degree in 1972 from Dhaka University.

However, the meritorious senior journalist took up journalism as his career in 1968 and worked for different newspapers, including now defunct The Bangladesh Observer, The Daily Star, Financial Express, Daily Telegraph, News Today and Financial Herald in his long professional life. He had also served as the president of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ).