Tofail Ahmed’s wife Anwara Begum dies at 75 after prolonged illness

Relatives say she long suffered from kidney complications and other illnesses

Anwara Begum Anu, wife of Awami League veteran and former minister Tofail Ahmed, has died in Dhaka after battling kidney complications and multiple illnesses.

She was 75.

Her brother Pintu Talukder said she passed away at around 6:15pm on Thursday at Square Hospital in the capital.

Tofail, who rose to prominence from grassroots politics and played a key role in the student movement of the 1960s, the 1969 mass uprising and the Liberation War of 1971, is also undergoing treatment at the same hospital.

Family members said Anwara had been unwell for several days due to kidney complications and other health issues. Her condition deteriorated on Wednesday, prompting doctors to shift her to the intensive care unit at Square Hospital.

The family said she will be buried on Friday at the family graveyard in Bhola following funeral prayers after Jummah at the Fatema Khanom Jame Mosque in Banglabazar.

Tofail, who was a fiery student leader from his college days, married Anwara in 1964, the year he completed his BSc degree. Their only daughter Taslima Ahmed Zaman Munni is a doctor.