Noor-ul-Amin

An anti-war and principal Pakistan movement activist, Amin is considered a patriot who worked to keep Pakistan united. He initially opposed the creation of Bangladesh during the Bangladesh Liberation War – but after the 25 March massacre, devoted his position to reopening communication channels between the warring sides, curbing wartime crimes and repatriating Bengalis stranded in West Pakistan after Bangladeshi liberation.

Amin stayed in West Pakistan, while his home region achieved independence as the People's Republic of Bangladesh. He died in Rawalpindi on 2 October 1974, less than three years after the dissolution of the united Pakistan, and was given a public state funeral by Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. He was buried in Jinnah Mausoleum, next to Jinnah. His tomb was specially designed, made of Italian white marble, with golden letters for his name and contributions.

The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, as it is now known, escalated as India and Pakistan formally acknowledged the "existence of a state of war between the two countries", even though neither government had formally issued a declaration of war.

As the situation in his home province of East Pakistan worsened, Amin was appointed Prime Minister by President General Yahya Khan on 6 December 1971. On 20 December 1971, however, Amin's term as prime minister was cut short as Yahya Khan resigned, leaving the Deputy Prime Minister (and Foreign Minister) Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to be sworn in as the new President. Two days later, Amin was appointed as Vice President of Pakistan, the only person to have held this post. He continued to hold this post until martial law was lifted on 21 April 1972.

In the 1970 elections, Amin was elected to the National Assembly as one of only two non-Awami League members from East Pakistan. During this time, the Pakistani authority had already become highly unpopular, as the Bengali language movement was suppressed. Civil unrest was sparked by the Language Movement and fuelled by discriminatory practices against the Bengali people; this led to East Pakistan's declaration of independence.

Amin ran as a candidate in the 1965 presidential elections, in East Pakistan, winning the majority vote in the Parliament of Pakistan. He declined to work with Ayub Khan. The same year, after the death of Fatima Jinnah, Amin succeeded Jinnah as Leader of Opposition, which he held until 1969, after General Yahya Khan imposed martial law again.

Amin served as the president of the East Pakistan Muslim League, and worked to improve its standing. During this time, the Pakistani authorities made reforms, including granting official status to the Bengali language in 1956 alongside Urdu. But after Army Commander General Mohammad Ayub Khan imposed martial law following a successful military coup d'état against the government of President Iskander Mirza in 1958, Amin's political career was halted as Ayub Khan disbanded all political parties in the country.

In the 1954 provisional elections, the Muslim League was fully defeated by the United Front, an alliance between the Awami League (led by Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy), the Krishak Sramik Party (chaired by A. K. Fazlul Huq), the Nizam Islam Party (headed by Maulana Athar Ali), and the Ganatantri Dal (led by Haji Mohammad Danesh and Mahmud Ali), eventually becoming more and more influential in Pakistani politics. It was in this turnover that Amin lost his assembly seat to a veteran student leader of East Pakistan, Khaleque Nawaz Khan, who had also been active in the Language Movement. The Muslim League was effectively eliminated from the provincial political landscape.

Historians have noted that Nurul Amin's government was not strong enough to administer the provincial state; it was completely under the control of the central government of Nazimuddin. His government did not enjoy enough power, and lacked vision, imagination, and initiatives. Amin failed to counter the Communist Party's influence in the region, which widely took the credit for turning the language movement in 1952 into large unified mass protest.

Public dissatisfaction with Amin had grown since October 1951, when Nazimuddin became Prime Minister. Amin expelled dissidents from within the ranks of the Muslim League, but doing so simply strengthened opposition to the party. In early 1952, students protested against Prime Minister Nazimuddin's declaration in the provincial capital Dacca (now Dhaka) that Urdu would be the sole national language. During the unrest, the civilian East-Pakistan police opened fire, killing four student activists. This raised more opposition in the region to the Muslim League. Prime Minister Bogra (also a Bengali) visited East Bengal in early 1954 in an attempt to rally support for the League, but it was too late. Leading politicians in West and East Pakistan called for Amin's resignation, and the new elections were soon held.

Starting his statesmanship in 1948 as Chief Minister of East Bengal, he headed the Ministry of Supply. After participating in parliamentary elections in 1970, Amin was appointed and served as Prime Minister of Pakistan. He was the first and the only Vice President of Pakistan from 1970 till 1972, leading Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971.

After the death of Jinnah, Amin was nominated as the Chief Minister of East Bengal in September 1948 by Khawaja Nazimuddin. Amin worked for the Muslim League in East Bengal, while continuing his relief programme for the population. As Chief Minister, his relations were significantly strained with Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan and Governor-General Khawaja Nazimuddin. Soon after the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, Amin was appointed as Minister of Supply. He was elected as a member of the Pakistan National Assembly from 1947 until 1954.

After the death of Jinnah, Amin was nominated as the Chief Minister of East Bengal in September 1948 by Khawaja Nazimuddin; who succeeded Jinnah as Governor General. Amin assumed the office of Chief Minister in a few weeks.

In 1946, Jinnah came to visit Bengal, where Amin assisted him. He promised the Bengali nation to build a democratic country. In East Bengal, Amin promoted the unity of Muslims. By the time of creation of Pakistan, Amin had become one of the leading advocates and activists of the Pakistan Movement; he had wide approval ratings by the Bengali population.

In 1945, Amin participated in Indian general elections, securing a landslide victory. He became a Member, and the following year was elected as the Speaker General of the Bengal Legislative Assembly.

During this time, Amin's interest in politics increased. He became an early member of the Muslim League led by Mohammad Ali Jinnah. During this time, Amin was appointed President of the Muslim League's Mymensingh district unit. In 1944, he was elected vice president of the Bengal Provincial Muslim League.

In 1929, Amin was appointed as a member of Mymensingh Local Board, and later became a member of Mymensingh District Board in 1930. In 1932, the British Indian Government appointed Amin as commissioner of Mymensingh Municipality. In 1937, Amin was appointed as the Chairman of Mymensingh District Board, an assignment he continued until 1945.

After graduating, Amin took the position of teaching at the local school named Gaffargaon Islamia Government High School and then another local school in Calcutta, but decided to pursue his career in law. In 1920, Amin began at the University of Calcutta; he gained an LLB in Law and Justice in 1924, and passed the Bar exam the same year. Amin started his career in law after joining the Mymensingh Judge Court Bar.

Nurul Amin (Urdu: نورالامین ‎; 15 July 1893 – 2 October 1974), referred to as the Patriot of Pakistan, was a prominent Pakistani leader, and a jurist who served as Prime Minister of Pakistan. He is noted as being the last Bengali leader of Pakistan.

Amin was born on 15 July 1893 to a Bengali Muslim family in Shahbazpur in his father working place, in what was then undivided Bengal's Tippera District (now in Brahmanbaria District). He then moved with his family to Nandail Upazila which was his native home in neighbouring Mymensingh District. In 1915, Amin passed the college entrance examination from Mymensingh Zilla School, joining Mymensingh Ananda Mohan College two years later to obtain his Intermediate in Arts (I.A); he graduated with a bachelor's degree in English literature in 1919.