Gonoforum President and former MP Mostafa Mohsin Montu passed away while undergoing treatment at a city hospital on Sunday. He was 81.
Montu, one of the organisers of the Liberation War, breathed his last at Square Hospital around 5pm, said Gonoforum’s publicity and publication secretary Muhammad Ullah Modhu.
He said the veteran leader had recently been admitted to the hospital with lung infections.
According to a Gonoforum press release, Montu’s first namaz-e-janaza will be held after Esha prayers today (Sunday) at Baitul Mamur Jame Mosque in the city’s Katabon Dhal area. His second janaza will be held at 9:30am on Monday (June 16) at Nekrojbagh field in Keraniganj.
Later, on Monday, his body will be taken to the Central Shaheed Minar, where people from all walks of life can pay their last respects to the valiant freedom fighter between 2pm and 3pm.
He will then be laid to rest at Banani Graveyard.
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Gonoforum founder and emeritus president Dr Kamal Hossain expressed deep sorrow over his death.
Describing Montu as a patriot, democrat, lifelong struggler and people’s leader, Dr Kamal said, “He always upheld and nurtured the spirit of the Liberation War. With his passing, the nation has lost a revered patriotic leader.”
Fakhrul Mourns
Upon hearing the news, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir visited Square Hospital to pay his respects.
Standing in solemn silence beside Montu’s body, Fakhrul remembered his long-time comrade from their political days at Dhaka College and Dhaka University.
“Mostafa Mohsin Montu was a true freedom fighter who never compromised on principles and ethics,” Fakhrul told reporters. “His identity goes beyond that of Gonoforum president—he was a living symbol of the Liberation War. Personally, I have lost a close friend.”
Fakhrul also spoke to Montu’s family members and offered his condolences.
Montu had been involved in Awami League politics since his student life and was elected president of the Jubo League, the party’s youth wing. He also served as the general secretary of the Awami League’s Dhaka city unit.
He played a significant role in the historic 1969 mass uprising and the 1990 anti-autocracy movement.
In 1986, he was elected MP from Dhaka-3 as an Awami League candidate. He contested the same seat again in the 1991 parliamentary election but was defeated.
After being expelled from the Awami League in 1992, Montu joined Gonoforum in 1993, the year it was founded by Dr Kamal Hossain.