Prof Sakhawat Ali Khan passes away

Renowned journalist and academician Prof Sakhawat Ali Khan passed away on Sunday night at a private hospital in the capital. He was 85.

According to his family, he had suffered a stroke a few days earlier. After receiving treatment at a hospital for several days, he was taken back home. On Sunday night, he suddenly fell ill and was rushed to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Prof Sakhawat Ali Khan is survived by his wife, a son, a daughter, two grandchildren, and numerous students and admirers.

Born in 1941 into a respected family in Shibpur upazila of Narsingdi, Khan worked as a journalist for nearly a decade at several national dailies before joining the teaching profession. He later served for a long period as a faculty member at the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at the University of Dhaka and retired from there in 2008.

After retirement, he served for five years as a supernumerary professor at the same department. Until his death, he was serving as an honorary professor of the department.

He also served as a part-time adviser to the Department of Journalism at Daffodil International University and as the dean of the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh.

Prof Sakhawat Ali Khan was the founding president of the Consumer Association of Bangladesh and the chairman of the Society for Environment and Social Development. The interaction between journalism and politics was one of the key areas of his research.

More than 30 of his research papers have been published in local and international journals. He also served as a member of the management board of the Bangladesh Press Council and the Press Institute of Bangladesh.