Niamat Khan

Niamat Khan (, ) was the vizier and leading statesman of the Bakla-Chandradwip kingdom (present-day Barisal Division, Bangladesh) during the latter part of the 16th century. He played a crucial role in initiating one of the earliest known international treaties between a Bengali polity and a European colonial power.

Biography The arrival of the Portuguese in the Bay of Bengal in the early 16th century introduced new maritime and political dynamics to the region. By the 1520s, ships of the Portuguese Empire had begun frequenting the Port of Chittagong engaging in trade and occasional conflict with the Sultanate of Bengal. Seeking more stable and advantageous relations, Portuguese merchants turned to smaller coastal states that might be more receptive to commercial alliances. The kingdom of Chandradwip, under Raja Paramananda Basu occupied a strategic location near the Meghna estuary. As vizier of Bakla-Chandradwip, Niamat Khan occupied a central role in managing both internal affairs and foreign policy. He confronted the growing need to navigate external pressures from neighbouring rivals, such as the Rajas of Bhulua, Sreepur, Bhushna, and the Arakanese Kingdom of Mrauk U, as well as to engage constructively with European powers seeking influence in Bengal’s littoral regions. In this context, it was Niamat Khan who emerged as the principal figure responsible for initiating formal contact and shaping a diplomatic response to Portuguese overtures. The original manuscript of the treaty remains preserved at the repositories of Italy.