Dhaka, Oct. 17 -- It must have been 1989 or 1990. In the familiar corridor of the Department of English at the University of Dhaka, a student was chatting informally with the department's then chairman, Prof Syed Manzoorul Islam, while smoking a cigarette. The scene caught the attention of a relatively new student - this scribe -passing through the corridor. It prompted a natural question: who was this student? He turned out to be Toufique Imrose Khalidi, a Master's student already pursuing a career in journalism.

Soon, it became clear that Khalidi was a popular figure in the department. Teachers liked him, classmates respected him and junior students looked up to him - some even idolised him. His charisma inspired many students in the d...