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Veteran journalist and teacher Shahed Kamal was taken to the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at the University of Dhaka (DU) for a final farewell on Sunday, where colleagues, students and admirers paid tribute to him.
Following his funeral prayers at Dhanmondi’s Taqwa Mosque around noon, his coffin was brought to the front of the Social Sciences Faculty building, where faculty members, current and former students, and several organisations, including the department’s Alumni Association, Dharitri Rakkhay Amra, and Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), paid their last respects to the son of renowned poet Sufia Kamal.
Professor Robayet Ferdous of the department described Shahed Kamal as “a walking encyclopaedia.”
“There was hardly any subject—politics, philosophy or sociology—that he did not know. His greatest quality was that he always spoke with accuracy and relied on facts,” he said.
“He also remained a part-time teacher at the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism until his final days, which is a remarkable legacy for any educator.”
Journalist Munni Saha said Shahed Kamal had been “a spiritual father” to her.
“For all of us who were his students, today we have lost someone we could always look up to. I stayed in regular contact with him, and he continued reading the news every day,” she said.
Among those present were Professors Golam Rahman, Geeti Ara Nasreen, Abul Monsur Ahmed, Kaberi Gayen, Mofizur Rahman and Robayet Ferdous; Associate Professors Saiful Haque, Shawnti Haider and Shabnam Azim; journalist Munni Saha; rights activist Khushi Kabir; and Sharmin Rimi, general secretary of the department’s Alumni Association.
After the tribute at the department, Shahed Kamal’s coffin was taken to the University of Dhaka Central Jame Mosque, where his funeral prayers were held after Zuhr.
His body was then scheduled to be taken to the National Press Club at 2:00pm for another tribute before being laid to rest at Azimpur Graveyard at 4:00pm.
Shahed Kamal began his journalism career in 1957 and worked for many years at the state-owned Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS). He also taught at the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at the University of Dhaka from 1976 onward.
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