Hamida Habibullah

Begum Hamida Habibullah (20 November 1916 – 13 March 2018) was an Indian parliamentarian, educationist and social worker. She has been called the iconic face of Indian womanhood in post-independence India.

Early life and education Begum Hamida Habibullah was born in Lucknow. She was the daughter of Nawab Nazir Yar Jung Bahadur, Chief Justice of Hyderabad High Court and the elder sister of three brothers. She spent her childhood and her early years in Hyderabad. She also studied for a two-year teacher training Course at Whitelands College in Putney, London.

Personal life In 1938, she married Major General Enaith Habibullah, founder commandant of National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla.

Her son, Wajahat Habibullah, is a former IAS officer as well as a former chairperson of the National Commission for Minorities, and her grandsons Amar Habibullah and Saif Habibullah are prominent businessmen. She was also President of Talimgah-E-Niswan College since 1975, a school with 3,500 catering for the education of Muslim girls founded by her mother-in-law, the late Begum Inam Habibullah.

She was also the co-founder of non-governmental organization, Prajwala.