Shahnaz Huda is a law professor at the University of Dhaka. [1] [2] [3] She is the former chairman of the Department of Law of the University of Dhaka. [4] She is a member of the Police Reform Commission of the Muhmmad Yunus led interim government of Bangladesh. [5]
Huda graduated from Viqarunnisa Noon School and College in 1978 and Holy Cross College, Dhaka in 1980. [5] She finished her bachelors and masters in law at the University of Dhaka in 1984 and 1985 respectively. [5] She earned her PhD in 1996 at the University of East London. [6] Her thesis was “Born to be Wed: Bangladeshi Women and the Formation of the Muslim Marriage Contract”. [5] She completed her post-doctoral research at the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London. [6]
Huda joined the law faculty of the University of Dhaka in 1989. [6]
In 2011, Huda published Combating Gender Injustice: Hindu Law in Bangladesh, a textbook for law schools in Bangladesh. [6] She is the Director of the Centre for Advanced Legal Studies (CALS). [7] She recommend banning Fatwa. [8] In 2012, she signed a statement calling the government of Bangladesh to leave Grameen Bank alone. [9] She signed a statement critical of a High Court Division order that called for sedition charges against Asif Nazrul over comments he made on a television channel where he warned another 1/11 situation might happen due to the political crisis in the country. [10]
According to Huda in 2015, Bangladeshi law does not allow Muslims to adopt children only Hindu males are allowed to adopt. [11] She presided over a symposium organized by the Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs on "Revisiting Divorce and other Related Issues" in 2016. [12] She signed a statement calling for withdrawal of cases against Mahfuz Anam, editor of The Daily Star. [13]
In 2019, Huda condemned the Murder of Abrar Fahad as an attack on free speech. [14] In 2021, she signed a statement calling for the release of Rozina Islam. [15] She is an executive member of Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik. [16] She called on the government to allow former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to travel abroad for medical treatment. [17] In 2022, she called on the government to renew registration of Odhikar. [18] In January and February 2024, she protested attempts to harass Muhmmad Yunus by the government of Bangladesh. [19] [20] After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina led Awami League government, she was appointed member of the Police Reform Commission. [21]