Ajoy Roy
Encyclopedia
Ajoy Roy (born March 1, 1935 in Dinajpur, Bangladesh
) is a retired Professor of Physics at the Dhaka University of Bangladesh
, but is best known for his prominent role in the Bangladesh
human rights
activistm and freethinking. He has been one of the eminent educationists promoting secular humanism
in Bangladesh.
He is founder and President of the Shishka Andolan Mancha (Platform For Education-Movement) and chairman of Shamriti Mancha (Platform for peace-harmony-tranquility).
Roy is editor in chief of Muktanwesa magazine, a Bengali publication for promoting freethinking and Secular Humanism. He is also the member of advisory board of the Mukto-Mona, an Internet congregation of freethinkers, rationalists, skeptics, atheists & humanists of mainly Bengali and South Asian descent. He is an Honorary Associate of the Rationalist International
, an organization that defends rationalist ideas. He has been contributing as a columnist to the national newspapers of Bangladesh.
and the Master's degree
from Dhaka University , and took his Doctor of Philosophy
degree in Physical Chemistry from Leeds University of England
. He was among a group of teachers who formed an advanced center of Solid State Physics and crystallography established in 1969 under the sponsorship of UNESCO
. His work led to the discovery of some fundamental processes in radiation chemistry of aliphatic and amino acids and their salts. The process of dissociative electron capture and the subsequent fate of electron is considered to be his major contribution as a scientist. His scientific works have also been cited in the contents of volumes (1–50) of Progress in NMR Spectroscopy.
in 1971 as a freedom fighter. He was one of the teachers of Dhaka University who were directly involved with the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971, paramilitary as a member of Mukti Bahini
(or liberation army) involving in guerrilla warfare
in Comilla
border to fight against the West Pakistani army. Later he became a member of the Planning Commission to the Government of Bangladesh during the liberation war and worked as a General Secretary of East Pakistan Teachers' association in Kolkata
.,. He also established several cultural organizations to inspire the freedom fighters where Mamunur Rashid
and other noted actors took active part. After Liberation Prof. Roy was the General Secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh in the 1972-73 period, succeeding Ahmed Sharif
.
When Pakistani freethinker Dr. Younus Shaikh was in prison and waiting for death penalty for alleged blasphemous remarks on Prophet Muhammad
in 2000, Ajoy Roy organized 'Save Dr. Yunus Shaikh Committee' and held meetings, procession, seminars, road side demonstration and staged demonstration against Pakistani president, General Pervez Musharraf
in front of the Pakistan High commission at Dhaka.
Following the 2001 general elections, there was a wave of violence and oppression towards the minority Hindu community, Prof. Ajoy Roy took active stand to help the victims. He also created control & monitoring cell at Dhaka before the election of 2008 to prevent similar atrocities on minority population of Bangladesh. He has also been working for the rights of the indigenous and hill people of Bangladesh
The God Delusion in Bangla and took active role to introduce Aroj Ali Matubbar
, the rationalist, peasant-philosopher of Bangladesh in the west. He defended Taslima Nasrin
and her plight in various essays. He has been working to build up a science-based culture for rapid development of the country. He is also one of the pioneer to organize Darwin Day
rally at Dhaka.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
) is a retired Professor of Physics at the Dhaka University of Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, but is best known for his prominent role in the Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activistm and freethinking. He has been one of the eminent educationists promoting secular humanism
Secular humanism
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as Humanism , is a secular philosophy that embraces human reason, ethics, justice, and the search for human fulfillment...
in Bangladesh.
He is founder and President of the Shishka Andolan Mancha (Platform For Education-Movement) and chairman of Shamriti Mancha (Platform for peace-harmony-tranquility).
Roy is editor in chief of Muktanwesa magazine, a Bengali publication for promoting freethinking and Secular Humanism. He is also the member of advisory board of the Mukto-Mona, an Internet congregation of freethinkers, rationalists, skeptics, atheists & humanists of mainly Bengali and South Asian descent. He is an Honorary Associate of the Rationalist International
Rationalist International
Rationalist International is an organization with the stated aim to represent a rational view of the world, making the voice of reason heard and considered where public opinion is formed and decisions are made.- Rationalism :...
, an organization that defends rationalist ideas. He has been contributing as a columnist to the national newspapers of Bangladesh.
Early years and Education
Ajoy Roy received his Bachelor's degreeBachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
and the Master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
from Dhaka University , and took his Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degree in Physical Chemistry from Leeds University of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He was among a group of teachers who formed an advanced center of Solid State Physics and crystallography established in 1969 under the sponsorship of UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
. His work led to the discovery of some fundamental processes in radiation chemistry of aliphatic and amino acids and their salts. The process of dissociative electron capture and the subsequent fate of electron is considered to be his major contribution as a scientist. His scientific works have also been cited in the contents of volumes (1–50) of Progress in NMR Spectroscopy.
Human Rights Activism
Roy participated in many progressive movements in Bangladesh including Language movement of 1952, Mass Movement in 1969, and Non Co-operation movement of 1970 and most prominently, in the Bangladesh Liberation WarBangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
in 1971 as a freedom fighter. He was one of the teachers of Dhaka University who were directly involved with the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971, paramilitary as a member of Mukti Bahini
Mukti Bahini
Mukti Bahini , also termed as the "Freedom Fighters" or FFs, collectively refers to the armed organizations who fought against the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War. It was dynamically formed by Bengali regulars and civilians after the proclamation of Bangladesh's independence on...
(or liberation army) involving in guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
in Comilla
Comilla
Comilla is a city in south-eastern Bangladesh, located along the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway. It is the administrative center of the Comilla District, part of the Chittagong Division. The Eastern Wing of Bangladesh Highway Police is located in Comilla....
border to fight against the West Pakistani army. Later he became a member of the Planning Commission to the Government of Bangladesh during the liberation war and worked as a General Secretary of East Pakistan Teachers' association in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
.,. He also established several cultural organizations to inspire the freedom fighters where Mamunur Rashid
Mamunur Rashid
Mamunur Rashid is one of the pioneering theatre activists in Bangladesh. He is the chief secretary of leading theatre group Aranyak which plays crucial roles in creating common people aware about their rights through his plays. He was born on 29 February in 1948 in the village Paikora under Kalhati...
and other noted actors took active part. After Liberation Prof. Roy was the General Secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh in the 1972-73 period, succeeding Ahmed Sharif
Ahmed Sharif
Ahmed Sharif was an educationist, philosopher, critic, writer and scholar of medieval Bangla literature. Born in Chittagong, Sharif retired as a Professor from University of Dhaka in 1983. Sharif is widely recognized as one of the most outspoken atheist and radical thinkers of Bangladesh.Dr...
.
When Pakistani freethinker Dr. Younus Shaikh was in prison and waiting for death penalty for alleged blasphemous remarks on Prophet Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
in 2000, Ajoy Roy organized 'Save Dr. Yunus Shaikh Committee' and held meetings, procession, seminars, road side demonstration and staged demonstration against Pakistani president, General Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf , is a retired four-star general who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff and tenth President of Pakistan as well as tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Musharraf headed and led an administrative military government from October 1999 till August 2007. He ruled...
in front of the Pakistan High commission at Dhaka.
Following the 2001 general elections, there was a wave of violence and oppression towards the minority Hindu community, Prof. Ajoy Roy took active stand to help the victims. He also created control & monitoring cell at Dhaka before the election of 2008 to prevent similar atrocities on minority population of Bangladesh. He has also been working for the rights of the indigenous and hill people of Bangladesh
Freethinking and Secular Humanism
Roy translated the first chapter of Richard Dawkin'sRichard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
The God Delusion in Bangla and took active role to introduce Aroj Ali Matubbar
Aroj Ali Matubbar
Aroj Ali Matubbar , a self-taught philosopher and apostate, and communist politician of Bangladesh, was born in British India on 17 December 1900 in the village of Lamchari in Charbaria union, about 11 km from Barisal town, currently in Bangladesh. His original name is Aroj Ali. The name...
, the rationalist, peasant-philosopher of Bangladesh in the west. He defended Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin is a Bengali Bangladeshi ex-doctor turned author who has been living in exile since 1994. From a modest literary profile in the late 1980s, she rose to global fame by the end of the 20th century owing to her feminist views and her criticism of Islam in particular and of religion in...
and her plight in various essays. He has been working to build up a science-based culture for rapid development of the country. He is also one of the pioneer to organize Darwin Day
Darwin Day
Darwin Day is a recently instituted celebration intended to commemorate the anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin on February 12, 1809. The day is used to highlight Darwin's contribution to science and to promote science in general.-History:...
rally at Dhaka.
Books
Following books of Ajoy Roy were published from Bangladesh:- Biggan O Darshan: Jor er Shondhane (Science and Philosophy: The Quest for Matter) (1993–94)
- Adi Bangali : Nritattik O shomajtattik Bishleshon (The Ancient Bengali) (1997) [wining the best book from Itihash Parishad]
- Swatantra Bhabna (Independent Thought) (2008)
- Leela Nag: Shoto Borsher Sroddhanjoli (Leela Nag - A Tribute) (2003)
- Podartho Bidya: Resnick/Halliday (co-translation of Fundamentals of Physics by Resnick/Halliday)
- Bangla Academy Biggan Kosh (Bangla Academy Science Encyclopedia)
Recognition and awards
- Bangla Academy AwardBangla Academy AwardBangla Academy Award is a literary award given by the Bangla Academy of Bangladesh in recognition of creative genius in advancement and overall contribution in the field of Bangla language and literature....
(2011) , - Asiatic Society Fellowship Award (2009)
- Bangla Academy Fellowship Award (2008)
- Jahanara Imam Memorial Award (2007)