{{Short description|Former English-language newspaper in Bangladesh}} {{about|a defunct Bangladeshi English daily that was known as the "The Pakistan Observer" before 1971|the Pakistani English daily published since 1988|Pakistan Observer}} {{Infobox newspaper | name = The Bangladesh Observer | founder = Hamidul Huq Choudhury | founded = 1949 |ceased_publication = June 8, 2010 | website = }} '''''The Bangladesh Observer''''', founded by Hamidul Huq Choudhury in 1949,<ref name=Memoirs>{{cite book|last=Huq Chowdhury|first=Hamidul|title=Memoirs|year=1989|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3pIjwRq24YYC&q=observer|publisher=Al Helal Printing & Publishing|accessdate=24 March 2012}}</ref><ref name=ians>{{cite news |title= Bangladesh Observer closed down |date= June 8, 2010 |agency= Indo-Asian News Service |work= Thaindian.com |url= http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/bangladesh-observer-closed-down_100377157.html |archive-date= November 16, 2019 |access-date= June 8, 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191116043549/http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/bangladesh-observer-closed-down_100377157.html |url-status= dead }}</ref> was the oldest continuously published English-language daily newspaper in Bangladesh until it ceased publication in June 2010.
== History == Since its inception as '''''The Pakistan Observer''''' in 1949, the newspaper consistently followed an independent editorial policy, reflecting both the personality of its owner Hamidul Huq Choudhury and its long time editor Abdus Salam, and was an appropriate stance considering the tumultuous history of the region. Mohammad Shehabullah served as the newspaper's first editor. Shehabullah was succeeded by Abdus Salam, who served as editor of '''''The Pakistan Observer''''' from 1949 to 1972.
The East Pakistan provincial government imposed an embargo on the newspaper's publication under the repressive Public Safety Act in February 1952. This was in response to the newspaper's strong support for the East Pakistan language movement and demands for provincial autonomy. Both Hamidul Huq Choudhury and Abdus Salam were arrested at this time to stifle the voice of the press.<ref>{{cite web|title=Observer closed|url=https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/print/observer-closed|publisher=The Financial Express (Bangladesh)|date=9 June 2010|accessdate=4 January 2026|archive-date=4 January 2026|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260104125251/https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/print/observer-closed|url-status=live}}</ref> The United Front government withdrew the embargo in May 1954 following the coalitions landslide electoral victory. In the early 1960s, the paper was black-listed and deprived of government advertising by the military government of General Ayub Khan due to its support for greater autonomy for East Pakistan.
Immediately after the creation of Bangladesh, '''''The Pakistan Observer''''' was renamed '''''The Bangladesh Observer''''' in December 1971.<ref>{{cite web|title=Owners shut Bangladesh Observer|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-141919|publisher=The Daily Star (Bangladesh)|date=9 June 2010|accessdate=1 April 2025|archive-date=April 1, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250401120519/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-141919|url-status=live}}</ref> Its management was taken over by the Bangladesh government in January 1972.<ref name=ians/> The military government of General Hussain Mohammed Ershad restored the newspaper to its original owner Hamidul Huq Choudhury in January 1984.<ref name=ians/> On June 8, 2010, '''''The Bangladesh Observer''''' announced that it had ceased publication.<ref>{{cite news|title=Special: Requiem for the Observer |work=bdnews24.com |date=March 23, 2009 |accessdate=2013-06-06 |url=https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/specialrequiem-for-the-observer|archive-date=April 1, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250401120403/https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/specialrequiem-for-the-observer|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=close>{{cite news |title=Bangladesh Observer closed |work=bdnews24.com |date=June 8, 2010 |url= http://bdnews24.com/details.php?id=163687&cid=2}}</ref><ref name="Obituary of the Observer">{{cite web|last=Haque|first=A.N.M. Nurul|title=Obituary of the Observer|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-142952|publisher=The Daily Star (Bangladesh)|accessdate=24 March 2012|archive-date=April 1, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250401120842/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-142952|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sad demise of the Bangladesh Observer|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-142040|publisher=The Daily Star (Bangladesh)|date=10 June 2010|accessdate=4 January 2026|archive-date=4 January 2026|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260104124806/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-142040|url-status=live}}</ref>
==See also== *List of newspapers in Bangladesh *Hamidul Huq Choudhury
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Newspapers of Bangladesh}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bangladesh Observer}} Category:Defunct newspapers published in Bangladesh Category:Newspapers established in 1949 Category:Newspapers disestablished in 2010 Category:1949 establishments in East Bengal Category:2010 disestablishments in Bangladesh Category:Daily newspapers published in Bangladesh Category:English-language newspapers published in Bangladesh Category:Defunct daily newspapers