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Begum Abida Ahmed

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Begum Abida Ahmed
First Lady of India
In role
24 August 1974 – 11 February 1977
PresidentFakhruddin Ali Ahmed
Prime MinisterIndira Gandhi
Vice PresidentGopal Swarup Pathak
B.D. Jatti
Preceded bySaraswati Bai
Succeeded byShrimati Sangamma
Personal details
Born17 July 1923
Badaun district, United Provinces, British India
Died7 December 2003 (aged 80)
New Delhi, India
Political partyIndian National Congress
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1945; died 1977)​
Children3
EducationAligarh Muslim University
President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and First Lady Begum Abida Ahmed

Begum Abida Ahmed (17 July 1923 – 7 December 2003) was an Indian politician, artist, and social activist, notable for her role as the First Lady of India from 1974 to 1977 and later as a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha, representing the Bareilly parliamentary constituency of Uttar Pradesh. Begum Abida Ahmed was also the wife of Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, the fifth President of India, serving from 1974 until his death in 1977.

Early life

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Begum Abida Ahmed was born on 17 July 1923 in Sheikhupur, Badaun, Uttar Pradesh.[1] She grew up in a politically engaged environment, which shaped her future interests in public service and activism.

She pursued her education at the Women's College, Aligarh and the Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh.[2] There she excelled academically and demonstrated an interest in national and international affairs. Her early exposure to politics and social issues inspired her to pursue a career in public life.

She married her husband Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed on 9 November 1945.[3]

Career

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First Lady of India

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Begum is credited with having overhauled the presidential kitchen and ensuring Awadhi cuisine was included in its repertoire, as well as redecorating the rooms and upholstery of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.[4][5][6]

Member of Parliament

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In 1979 while attempting to file her paperwork for the 1980 election Ahmed was stopped by protesters surrounding her home in an attempt to prevent her and other women from filing election paperwork.[7][8] Her paperwork was later smuggled out of her home by one of her supporters with a police escort.[7][9]

In the 1980s, she went on to become a two-term MP in the of Lok Sabha as part of the Indian National Congress[10] from Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh.[11][12]

Tributes

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Shamsul Hasan made a life-size statue of "Ghalib", which had been ordered by Ahmed.[18]

A train was named after her: the Abida Begum Express: Delhi Jn. - Raxaul. It has since been renamed. It is now called Satyagrah Express.[19]

Personal life

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Abida and Fakhruddin had two sons and a daughter.[20][21] The elder of their sons, Parvez Ahmed, is a doctor who contested the General Elections of 2014 in the Barpeta constituency as a candidate of the Trinamool Congress party.[22][23][24] Their other son, Badar Durrez Ahmed, served as a judge of the Delhi High Court and retired as Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.[25][26] Abida was a badminton player and led the Assam team in the 1958 national championships.[27]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Parekh, Rauf (22 May 2018). "Urdu fiction and Sultan Hyder Josh's serio-comic writings". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  2. ^ Ram, Sharmila Ganesan (11 July 2022). "Times top10". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  3. ^ Vajpayee, Ramkrishna (7 December 2020). "बेगम आबिदा अहमद की पुण्यतिथि, जानिए उनकी जिंदगी से जुड़े अनसुने किस्से" [Begum Abida Ahmed's death anniversary, know the unheard stories related to her life]. newstrack.com (in Hindi). Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  4. ^ "All the Presidents' Meals: What is served at the First Table". The Indian Express. 16 September 2021. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  5. ^ "From samosas to Lahori fish, nothing will taste the same without Atal Bihari Vajpayee's company". DailyO. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Feels Like Home". The Indian Express. 1 November 2020. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  7. ^ a b Niesewand, Peter (11 December 1979). "Two die in Indian Election violence". The Guardian. p. 7. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  8. ^ Sonowal, CJ (2009). "International Relations Journal | Politics of Immigration, Resentment and Threat to National Integrity: A Political Discourse on Assam, India". The IUP Journal of International Relations. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  9. ^ Bhagabati, Dikshit Sarma (2021). "Exorcisms: Xenophobia, citizenship, and the spectre of Assamese nationalism". Jindal Global Law Review. 12 (1): 171–203. doi:10.1007/s41020-021-00147-4. ISSN 0975-2498. PMC 8178655.
  10. ^ Rajput, Pam; Thakkar, Usha (4 April 2023). Women in State Politics in India: Missing in the Corridors of Power (1 ed.). London: Routledge India. doi:10.4324/9781003374862. ISBN 978-1-003-37486-2.
  11. ^ "Savita Kovind enters Rashtrapati Bhavan, but India's First Ladies are yet to make a mark". The Indian Express. 26 July 2017. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  12. ^ Fleschenberg, Andrea; Derichs, Claudia; Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, eds. (2012). Women and politics in Asia: a springboard for democracy. Singapore : Zürich: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies ; Lit Verlag. ISBN 978-981-4311-73-1.
  13. ^ "About - God's Grace School". Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 5 September 2011.
  14. ^ "India Islamic Cultural Centre - 1981-2018 Genesis, Aims, Obligations". Muslim Mirror. 4 January 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  15. ^ Masoud, Abdul Bari (15 August 2024). "Khurshid becomes India Islamic Cultural Centre president, RSS-backed candidate loses". IndiaTomorrow. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  16. ^ "The royal touch". The Hindu. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  17. ^ "Gender+ newsletter". The Times of India. 11 July 2022. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  18. ^ The Queen of Oudh - Begum Hazrat Mahal in Papier Mache
  19. ^ [IRFCA] Indian Railways FAQ: Train Names
  20. ^ "The Orlando Sentinel 11 Feb 1977, page 48". Newspapers.com. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  21. ^ "India's First Lady Moves Into the Official Spotlight". New York Times. 25 October 1974. p. 34. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  22. ^ "The Orlando Sentinel 11 Feb 1977, page 48". Newspapers.com. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  23. ^ "Former President's son to fight for TMC". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  24. ^ "Former President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed's son files nomination". Business Standard India. Press Trust of India. 31 March 2014. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed". Kashmir Life. 22 March 2018. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  26. ^ Sharma, Nalini (29 March 2017). "May the Force be with you! Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed bids farewell to Delhi HC [Read speech]". Bar and Bench - Indian Legal news. Archived from the original on 9 July 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  27. ^ "How successive Indian presidents patronised sports and became champions too". The Indian Express. 30 May 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
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