During her adolescence, while playing with friends on the playground, an unknown dervish called Khaleda Khanam Putul and said, “My child, you are a fortunate girl. One day you will become a queen.” After saying this, the dervish left. But in the heart of the young girl Putul, he planted the seed of immense possibilities for life.
Before she could even step fully from adolescence into youth, she found her life partner in Ziaur Rahman. Holding the hand of Bangladesh’s former President Ziaur Rahman, she became a queen. From Khaleda Khanam Putul, she emerged as Begum Khaleda Zia.
With the passage of time, she moved from being a queen to bearing the responsibility of running the state. She became the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She fought and struggled during the nation’s difficult times and showed direction at critical moments. She became the first female Prime Minister of Bangladesh and served as Prime Minister three times.
At the passing of Begum Khaleda Zia, the people of Dinajpur—where her memories are deeply rooted—are immersed in grief. Her childhood playmates, teachers, neighbors, and relatives are all overwhelmed with sorrow.
Khaleda Khanam Putul was the third child of businessman Iskandar Majumdar and Begum Taiyaba Majumdar, residents of Mudipara in Dinajpur town. She was born on 15 August 1945. Her childhood and adolescence were spent in Dinajpur. She passed her SSC examination in 1960, and in the same year, she married Ziaur Rahman. Thus began her journey toward an inevitable future.
Recalling childhood memories, Kamrun Nahar Begum, a resident of Swihari area of Dinajpur town and a childhood playmate of Khaleda Zia, told The Country Today that her late father Jamil Uddin’s house and Khaleda Zia’s father Iskandar Majumdar’s house were adjacent in the Eidgah Bosti area of the town. In childhood, Khaleda Zia was a close friend of her elder sister Mahmuda Begum. They used to play together and go to school together. Mahmuda Begum and Putul Apa studied in the same class at Dinajpur Government Girls’ School.
Kamrun Nahar further recalled that one day, while they were playing near their house in the Eidgah Bosti area with Khaleda Apa and others, a dervish suddenly appeared and called Khaleda Apa aside. Looking at her, he said, “My child, you are a fortunate girl. One day you will become a queen.”
Sitting at her home in Swihari, 76-year-old Kamrun Nahar told Dinkal that after saying those words, the dervish left and was never seen again. However, his words left a lasting impression on all of them. She also mentioned that her elder sister Mahmuda Begum, a close friend of Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away four months ago.
Advocate Molla Md. Sakhawat Hossain, son of Khaleda Zia’s classmate the late Shamsunnahar Begum, told Dinkal while recalling his mother’s memories that when Begum Khaleda Zia was elected as the country’s first female Prime Minister in 1991, his mother had said, “Look, the words spoken by that dervish in childhood have come true in Begum Khaleda Zia’s life today. She is not just the wife of a president; she has now been elected Prime Minister of Bangladesh.”
Another classmate and friend of Begum Khaleda Zia, Usharani Shil (81), daughter of Surendranath Shil of Mission Road, Dinajpur town, told Dinkal that she and Khaleda studied together at Dinajpur Government Girls’ School from a very young age. From childhood, Khaleda Zia was a kind-hearted and humble person. She mingled with everyone at school and was always cheerful. She added that at that time, Begum Khaleda Zia was considered the most beautiful student of Dinajpur Government Girls’ School.
Nazma Yasmin, the current headmistress of Dinajpur Government Girls’ School, told Dinkal that Begum Khaleda Zia was admitted to the school in 1954 in class four and passed her SSC examination from this school in 1960. She said that it is a matter of great pride for them that Begum Khaleda Zia was a student of their school, and they pray for the peace of her soul.
A visit to Taiyaba Villa, located in the Balubari area of Dinajpur municipality, shows that the building is currently being used as the National Diagnostic Center. However, the rooms on the second floor where Begum Khaleda Zia and her parents once lived are preserved and kept locked. An elderly woman named Karina Bewa is responsible for maintaining these rooms. She had long taken care of Khaleda Zia’s parents and now looks after these rooms.
Recalling childhood memories, a 78-year-old neighbor named Mosta Hasanur said, “Taiyaba Villa was named after Khaleda (Putul) Apa’s mother. She was two to three years older than me, and our houses were next to each other. I used to visit their house frequently. Her parents loved me very much, and Putul Apa also showed me great affection. She has passed away, and hearing this, I am deeply saddened. I raise my hands in prayer to Allah, asking that she be granted a place in heaven.”
