Wazed Ali Khan Panni


Wazed Ali Khan Panni was a Bengali Zamidar, politician, and philanthropist based in Tangail.

Early life

Panni was born in 1871 in Karatia, Tangail, Bengal Presidency. His father, Hafez Mahmud Ali Khan Panni, was a zamidar. He was home-schooled by private tutors and learned Arabic, Bangla, English, Persian, and Urdu languages. He helped the poet Mohammad Naimuddin translate Fatawa-e-Alamgiri into Bangla in 1892.

Career

Panni helped Khwaja Salimullah organize the Muslim Education Conference in Karatia, Tangail in 1913. He founded two schools in Karatia after the conference, Hafez Mahmud Ali Khan High School, named after his father, and Rokeya Aliyah Madrasah, named after his wife. He served as the head of the Mymensingh District Khilafat movement committee and the unit of All India Congress, serving in the All India Congress Committee. He was jailed for his role in the Khilafat movement in December 1921. Panni founded Saadat College in July 1926, named after his grandfather Saadat Ali Khan Panni. He was a philanthropist who spent 20 percent of his own income in charity work. As a Zamidar, he would be fair to his tenants and waive rent in case of natural disasters such as famine or flood.

Death

Panni died in 1936.