10th & 12th President of BangladeshIn office
24 March 1982-27 March1982
11Dec 1982-6 Dec 1990
H.M.Ershad was born in Rangpurin 1930. He graduated from the University of Dhaka in 1950 and was commissioned into the Pakistan army in 1952. Between 1960 and 1962, he was an adjutant in the East bengal regimental depot in Chittagong.He also completed advanced courses from the prestiguous command and Staff College in Quetta in 1966. After serving with a brigade in Sialkot, he was given command of the 3rd East Bengal Regiment in 1969 and the 7th East bengal Regiment in 1971. During the Bangladesh Liberation War, he waas interned along with other Bengali officers stationed in West Pakistanas a Prisner of War at the outbreak of the 1071 Liberation War and repatriated to Bangladesh in 1973, in accordance with Simla agreement between India's Indira Gandhi and Pakistan's Julfiquar Ali Bhutto.He arrived back to his home land -the new state of Bangladesh in 1973, and was appointed Deputy Chief of Army Staff in 1975 by major general Ziaur Rahmanwhen Zia became the the deputy CMLA following justice Sayem's elevation to the Presidency on 19 Nov, 1976.
Ershad remained loyal to Ziaur Rahman, Major general Zia had been appointed Army chief by President Khandaker Mostaq Ahmed after the assassination of Mujib.Although maj. gen. Zia was overthrown in a counter coup on Nov 3, he was restored to Power in coup led by Col.Abu Taher on nov 7. When Ziaur Rahman assumed the presidency Ershad was appointed as the closest politico-military councelor of Zia.
After the assassination of Ziaur Rahman on 30 May, 1981, Ershad remained loyal to the Govt. and ordered the army to suppress the coup attempt of Zia's associates led by Maj. Gen. Abul Manzoor. It is widely speculated that Manoor wasused as a scapegoat and Ershad himslf was behind the liquidation of President Zia, although never proven in any court of law,evenwhen Zia's widow was in power in 1991-1996 and again in 2001-2006. Ershad maintained loyalty to the new prsident Abdus Sattar, who led the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to victory in elections in 1982. Ershad even alloted a two houses to Mrs. Khaleda Zia and her two sons, However the BNP Govt. was not doing better and presure increasing from high ranking army commanders for the military to take over the reins of the state. Ershad came to Power in a bloodless coup on 24 March, 1982, and proclaimed himself Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA), President Sattar replaced.
