Ajay Bhattacharya

Ajay Bhattacharya ( ; 10 January 1914 – 4 January 1999) was a revolutionary activist, communist political organiser, historian, and writer from Sylhet. He became a prominent figure in the region's peasant resistance movements through his leadership in the Nankar Rebellion (1945–48). His written account of the movement is widely regarded as the most significant work of his career. Bhattacharya spent many years in prison during both British and Pakistani rule, remaining active in underground politics and later playing a key role in the formation and ideological direction of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist–Leninist). Alongside his political work, he produced novels, short stories, and historical writings that focused on feudal oppression and popular struggle.

Early life Bhattacharya was born on 10 January 1914 in Sylhet District, Assam Province, British India (now Lauta, Beanibazar Upazila, Bangladesh). He was born into a feudal family to Upendrakumar Bhattacharya and Kripamoyi Bhattacharya.

He was imprisoned a total of seven times during the British and Pakistani periods. Under Pakistan, he spent twenty years in jail between 1947 and 1967. The Nurul Amin government of East Pakistan offered him release on the condition that he permanently leave the country and go to India, but he rejected the proposal. During the 1950s, while incarcerated, he and Abdul Haque opposed the revisionist line associated with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. In the 1960s, following the international ideological dispute within the global communist movement centred on Khrushchev's policies, the Communist Party of East Pakistan underwent a split. At the party's fourth congress in 1967, the Communist Party of East Pakistan (Marxist–Leninist), or EPCP (M‑L), was formed, and Bhattacharya was elected to its central committee. In 1970, under the leadership of Abdul Haque, the EPCP (M‑L) adopted the political strategy formulated by Charu Majumdar concerning the elimination of class enemies. According to the party, the EPCP (M‑L) conducted a revolutionary struggle in 1971 based on class analysis within the historical context of the period.

After the political shift of 1975, Bhattacharya, along with Abdul Haque, engaged in an ideological struggle against what they identified as "class‑collaborationist", "liquidationist", "surrenderist", and counter‑revolutionary tendencies within the movement. He stepped down from central party responsibilities in 1983, though he continued to remain active in party affairs as a senior revolutionary leader.

A large number of his writings, including more than a hundred published and unpublished essays as well as manuscripts of stories, novels, and additional essays, remain uncollected and unreleased. His creative work prominently depicts feudal exploitation in colonial India and the struggles of people who resisted it. His two books on the Nankar movement are regarded as important historical documents of peasant activism in the region.

Death He died on 13 October 1999, at the age of 85, at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.