A. Q. M. Badruddoza Chowdhury

Abdul Qasim Mohammad Badruddoza Chowdhury (11 October 1930 – 5 October 2024) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the president of Bangladesh from 14 November 2001 until his dismissal on 21 June 2002. He was the founding secretary-general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

Chowdhury was also a physician, cultural activist, author, essayist, playwright, television presenter, and an orator of distinction.

Chowdhury passed his SSC from St. Gregory's School in 1947 and HSC from Dhaka College in 1949. He earned his MBBS degree from Dhaka Medical College in 1954–1955.

Presidency Chowdhury was appointed as the foreign minister of Bangladesh when the BNP party came to power in 2001. In November 2001, he was elected the president of Bangladesh by Jatiya Sangsad members. Seven months later, the incident of him deciding not to visit BNP founder Ziaur Rahman's grave on the anniversary of his death provoked the party members. They accused him of betraying the party. In June 2002, Chowdhury resigned from office as was asked by the ruling party before the situation escalated further.

Bikalpa Dhara Chowdhury felt the need for a third force in the de facto two-party democracy in Bangladesh. He expressed recruiting civil society members in politics to fight corruption and terrorism and establish good governance in the country through an alternate stream (lit. Bikalpa Dhara) political party. He, along with his son Mahi B. Chowdhury and BNP parliamentarian M A Mannan, resigned from the BNP to work for the new political party. Chowdhury was the president, with M A Mannan as the secretary-general of the new party, Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh, formed in March 2004. It had been a strong critic of the government during the time, and most of its members defected from the ruling BNP. and April 2009, during which time he had resigned from his post after the party could secure no seats during the 9th parliament elections. Together they had a son, Mahi B. Chowdhury, and two daughters, Muna and Shaila.