My cousin Shuvo, Dr Jalal Alamgir
by Nadim Jahangir / Courtesy New Age 8/12/11
MY EYES filled up with tears as I heard the news from Sayeed. I could not believe my ears. How could this happen to Shuvo, a person who can give so much to our country, a person who has given so much to his parents and enriched the lives of so many relatives and well wishers? He came back to Bangladesh to serve this nation, to spend more time with his parents and relatives. I find myself wishing that it wasn't real. Every time I think about it, pain is all I can feel. But my heart tells me that he'll always be with us.
Today is a day that everyone who knew Shuvo can only feel one emotion — sorrow, a sense of loss for the sheer waste of a beautiful life, a life that had just taken off like the phoenix, rising out of the ashes to take flight. With a heavy heart I write today about one of my most beloved cousins, Dr Jalal Alamgir (known to us as Shuvo) who has drowned in Phuket, Thailand on December 3. It was 3:00pm in the afternoon when Sayeed (my cousin's son) called me inquiring about my Alamgir Chacha and Chachi (Shuvo's parents) and their whereabouts. On December 3, a condolence meeting was taking place on my boro Chacha who died in November 2006 in the WVA auditorium in Dhanmondi. My whole family, relatives and well wishers were there. Since I had a meeting at 4:00pm I could not join the condolence meeting. Sayeed in a very low and shaky voice asked me where Shovo's parents were. No one was answering their cell phones. At first I couldn't hear Sayeed clearly and my brain was refusing to register what Sayeed's solemn voice was saying and I told him I couldn't hear him. Sayeed replied, `Nadim, there is an accident in Phuket and Jalal is no more…' I just couldn't believe what Sayeed had just told me. I asked him again, `Sayeed are you sure?' Sayeed in a cold voice answered, `Yes, Nadim, Fazila called me and she cannot be wrong.' Fazila is the newly married wife of Shuvo, who had accompanied Shuvo to Phuket. Sayeed is married to Fazila's elder sister Lamiya. I gave the needed information to Sayeed regarding the whereabouts of Shuvo's parents. All the time refusing to believe the news or thinking that there was a mistake, some sort of accident maybe, but death…can't be.
Shuvo was a true academician. He was an associate professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. He specialised in the inter-relationships between globalisation and representational politics. Shuvo did his undergraduate in economics and political science from St Lawrence University, USA, later he completed his MS and PhD from Brown University.
Though Shuvo was younger to me but during our childhood we were good friends. Still I remember in 1977 when my Alamgir chacha was the deputy commissioner of Jessore, Shamim Bhai (another cousin of mine) and I went to Jessore for two days but we ended up staying for a month there. Both of us (Shamim bhai and I) were enjoying so much our time with Shuvo that when chacha asked us to stay back for a few more days, actually in our hearts we were hoping we could stay few more days to spend time with Shuvo. I still remember in the morning we used to walk around in the huge compound of the DC premises, do gardening, after lunch we used to play badminton. Sometimes we drove around in Jessore town. Once my chacha sent us to see a circus in Jessore, that was the only circus I have watched till now, still now it is one of the most joyous moments of my life.
After HSC exam I went to the US and within a few years Shuvo started his undergraduate degree in the US as well. That was in the mid-1990s. During our stay in the US, we hardly had any contact between us. However, during 1992 when my dad came to the US as a visiting professor in Syracuse University, I was doing my studies in Minnesota. I drove from Minnesota to Syracuse, took my parents and we all went to see Shuvo in upstate New York, where he was doing his undergraduate degree at St Lawrence University. Shuvo was so excited to see us. The excitement was infectious. The hard, cold winter of November couldn't dampen that feeling, and it was snowing heavily. We had lunch together and talked for a few hours. Shuvo showed us his campus, his dorm room, and at 4:00pm it was time to say goodbye to Shuvo because we needed to get back to Syracuse. I could see that Shuvo was very sad to see us leaving; we also felt the same leaving our cousin in a remote, isolated university in upstate New York. I was driving with my parents; we were all waving hands with heavy hearts till the car moved into the Main Street. We could feel that Shuvo was still standing till our car was no longer in his vision.
Finally, Shuvo came back to Dhaka in 2011, and was in the process of moving to Dhaka permanently. He just got married a few years back to Fazila. They were starting their life in Dhaka, even though they both met in the US. Shuvo was very happy and excited to stay with his parents and wife in Dhaka. On the November 24 we met Shuvo for the last time at one of our nephew's engagement ceremony. He told me, `Nadim bhai, I won't go back. I want to stay in Bangladesh. And you must not go to Canada.' As my family is planning to leave for Canada on December 16, that was the suggestion from Shuvo. How man proposes and God disposes! But Shuvo could not enjoy this happiness for long. God has taken him from us. Shuvo was very warm hearted and a soft-spoken nice guy. A person who had so much to give not only to his parents but to the society at large.
Shuvo was true gentlemen. He was a loving, caring, and giving sort of person. I was saying to myself God only takes the best. At such a young age — Shuvo was only 40 years old — he has to leave this beautiful world. An age where he is supposed to fulfil all his dreams, reach out and touch the sky. The days of struggle over, the days of achieving in front! Maybe even be a Nobel laureate as one of his uncle's predicted. He had that in him and more….We all know life will move on with out Shuvo but life will not be same without Shuvo for us.
When I am writing this, my chacha (Shuvo's dad) is in Phuket to bring his son back to the country that both the son and father love with a passion. A country they both want to see reach the heights. Alamgir chacha few hours back called my chachi and said `he is sleeping peacefully.' Yes peace is what we are all looking at, the lull of solace for a nation and a family that has seen too much!
I'm glad Shuvo feels no pain now. His beloved land will embrace him and let him live in peace. I can still feel the soft touch of his loving hand on my shoulder. I can still see the twinkle in his eyes and the gentle curve of his mouth in a smile when he spoke.
Bangladesh has just lost another bright son who had the capability to contribute so much. Our land needs desperate help from people like Shuvo. Shuvo, may you rest in peace and we will always miss you.
Dr Nadim Jahangir is professor and director, School of Business, Independent University, Bangladesh.
