DHAKA, Bangladesh 

Bangladesh's transitional government on Thursday officially recognized Kazi Nazrul Islam, the eminent poet of Bangla literature, as the national poet, officials told Anadolu.

The government has issued a notification declaring Islam the "national poet of Bangladesh" since his migration to Bangladesh from India on May 4, 1972.

Born on May 24, 1899, in the Churulia suburb of the Paschim Bardhaman district of present-day India's West Bengal state, the Muslim poet played a significant role during the independence movement against British rule over the Indian subcontinent, earning him the title of "poet of revolt" or "Bidrohi Kobi."

Islam enriched Bangla literature with more than 500 poems and 2,500 songs.

His revolutionary literary work made the British uneasy, for which he was arrested and imprisoned.

Md. Latiful Islam Shibli, executive director of the Kabi Nazrul Institute in Dhaka, told Anadolu that Islam had been "ignored and his works neglected despite being the most inspirational figure among Bengalis."

Shibli said, “Constitutional recognition (of Islam) has a political and cultural significance not only in Bangladesh but among the oppressed people in South Asia.”

Islam’s work rose to importance during the July uprising against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, which fell on Aug. 5 of last year.

Students mostly used parts of Islam’s works and pasted them on the walls in the capital, Dhaka.

“This official announcement is a recognition of his influence during the student-led uprising and against dominating Indian hegemony,” said Shibli.

Md. Khorshed Alam, a Bangla language and literature professor at Jahangirnagar University in Dhaka, told Anadolu that Islam's recognition "is a significant journey for Bangladesh amid dominating poets" like Rabindranath Tagore across the border with India.

Tagore is a celebrated poet in India, particularly in the Bangla-speaking regions bordering Bangladesh.

“Very few poets dare to fight for the rights of oppressed people, and Nazrul (Islam) was one of them who fought against British rule and World War I in 1917 intensely in Europe and the Middle East,” said Alam.

Islam arrived in Bangladesh on May 4, 2972, and was eventually granted citizenship by Dhaka.

At that time, he was facing many health complications and had lost his voice as well.

In 1976, the then-Bangladesh government awarded Islam the Ekushey Padak, Bangladesh's second civilian honorary medal.

He died in Dhaka on Aug. 29 of the same year.