Chairman – BILIA

List of

Chairmen

Barrister M. Amir-Ul Islam

Present Chairman

Barrister M. Amir-ul Islam, born on 2nd January, 1937, was an elected Member of the National Assembly in the-then all Pakistan based National Elections held in 1970 where Bangabandhu-led Awami League won a landslide victory. A renowned politician and freedom fighter; Mr. Islam is the author of the Proclamation of Independence of Bangladesh (1971) and was a special Aide to the first Prime Minister (PM) of Bangladesh and maintained liaison with the PM of India, Mrs Indira Gandhi, during the Liberation war of Bangladesh.

Mr. Islam was one of the key figures in supervising and mandating Bangladesh’s Liberation War efforts in 1971; and initiated numerous diplomatic missions which toured world capitals advocating the Bangladesh cause to win international support and recognition of Bangladesh as a sovereign and independent nation. After Bangladesh came into being, like all other great leaders, he also took great pains to build up the new country a self-reliant and flourishing economy. He worked tirelessly with other Cabinet members of Bangabandhu-led government in rebuilding Bangladesh’s economy and infrastructure, especially in the countryside.

He played very important role as Whip of the Constituent Assembly and as a honourable Member of the drafting committee of Bangladesh Constitution, 1972. He has held several positions, including Minister for Food, 1973-1974, Honorary Secretary General, Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA), 1972, former president of Supreme Court Bar Association and elected head of Bangladesh Bar Council. Moreover, he is the founder Chairman of the Legal Education and Training Institute (LETI), a founder member of Saarc Law and later became the President of this regional Professional Association of Lawyers, endorsed by the Hon’able Chief Justices of all the respective Saarc countries and recognized by the Saarc Secretariat. He also served at the UN headquarters, NY and worked towards harmonisation of International Commercial Law with UNCITRAL.

Mr. Islam is one of the most senior advocates of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh and regarded and revered as a living legend by his community.

Dr. Kamal Hossain

Founding Chairman (1972-1977) & (2004-2014)

Dr Kamal Hossain is a prominent statesman, politician and lawyer. After the independence of Bangladesh, he served as the Minister of Law (1972–1973), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1973–1975) and Minister of Petroleum and Minerals (1974–1975). One of his earliest tasks as the Minister of Law was the drafting of the Constitution of Bangladesh for which he is regarded as the Father of the Bangladeshi Constitution. Between 1998 and 2003, he served as the UN Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan. He is currently a member of the UN Compensation Commission, Vice Chairman of the International Law Association in London, Chairman of both the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) and the South Asian Institute of Advanced Legal and Human Rights Studies (SAILS) and Advisory Council member for Transparency International.

Dr. Kamal Hossain

Founding Chairman (1972-1977) & (2004-2014)

Late Barrister Syed Ishtiaque Ahmed

Chairman (1992-2003)

Mr. Ahmed was a renowned and revered figure in the legal field of Bangladesh. A former Attorney General, Minister in charge of the Ministry of Law & Justice and Ministry of Local Government & Rural Development in the Interim Government of Bangladesh in 1996, and Minister in charge of the Ministry of Law & Justice and Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism in the Interim Government of Bangladesh in 2001, Mr. Ahmed was involved in numerous organisations and committees. He was also twice elected President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, in 1978-79 and 1989-90. He represented Bangladesh in the United Nations General Assembly in 1978 and was recruited as a member of the International Election Observer Group, where he helped to monitor national elections of Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the Maldives. He was an active member of the Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA), served as its alternate chairman from 1985 to 1991 and as chairman from 1992 until his death.

Late Mr. Justice F.K.M.A Munim

Chairman (1977-1992)

Late Mr Fazle Kaderi Mohammad Abdul Munim was an eminent Bangladeshi jurist and lawyer, who served as the Chief Justice of Bangladesh (1982-1989) and Chairman of the Law Commission. He was appointed Advocate General of East Pakistan in 1970. In the same year he was elevated to the position of a judge in the Dhaka High Court. After the emergence of Bangladesh Munim was appointed a judge of the High Court but was soon appointed as Secretary of the Ministry of Law Justice and Parliamentary Affairs and was closely associated with the drafting of the Constitution of Bangladesh. In 1973 he returned to the High Court Division as a judge and was made the Chief Justice of Bangladesh in 1982 and retired from his post in November 1989. On 6 August 1996, he was made the chairman of Bangladesh Law Commission.