Women Leadership in the Emergence of Bangladesh: A Study on Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib

Abstract

The emancipation of Bangladesh occupies a significant place in world history. Both men and women of Bangladesh valiantly participated in the liberation struggle and consequently, in the nation-building process. However, throughout the long period, liberation has been constructed as an exclusively male endeavour that ignores the contribution made by women in the process of bringing the nation into being. As women played an active and significant role in the process of constructing this nation, the need is now to reconstruct the traditional ways of representation as well as to see the role of women's leadership in the emergence of Bangladesh with a special focus on the life of Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib. In this regard, accommodating qualitative research methodology, more specifically the feminist research approach, this paper aims to explore the leadership of Bangamata by adorning the ‘Behavioural Theory of Leadership’ along with ‘Transformational Leadership Theory’ that emphasizes the actions, not on mental or inner characteristics of a leader. These theories centre on how an individual's surroundings structure that person into a leader. This paper has depicted the leadership of Bangamata in the creation of Bangladesh and its political-economic journey onwards. Social Science Review, Vol. 40(1), Jun 2023 Page 1-20