History of Dhaka's Historic Rose Garden Palace

The Rose Garden Palace stands as a prominent historical and architectural landmark situated in Tikatuli, located within Old Dhaka, Bangladesh. Spanning a history that extends from the 19th century up to the present day, the palace property originally encompasses approximately 22 bighas of land, while the main building itself features an area of seven thousand square feet. Constructed during the late 19th century, the estate was initially built by Hrishikesh Das. Throughout its long existence, the property has been associated with several notable figures, including Hrishikesh Das, Narendra Narayan Roy Chowdhury, Khan Bahadur Kazi Abdur Rashid, Kazi Humayun Bashir, and Kazi Abdur Rokib.

As the decades progressed, ownership of the estate underwent significant changes. In the year 1936, Hrishikesh Das sold the property to a businessman named Khan Bahadur Kazi Abdur Rashid. Following this acquisition, the historic residence was officially renamed 'Rashid Manzil'. Despite the change in ownership and nomenclature, the estate retained its grand architectural significance within the local community and throughout the broader region of Dhaka, serving as a notable venue for various social and historical developments over the course of the early 20th century.

The building secured a permanent place in political history in the middle of the 20th century. On the 23rd of June in the year 1949, this exact building served as the birthplace for the formation of the East Pakistan Awami Muslim League, an organization that later evolved into the Bangladesh Awami League. In subsequent years, the site also maintained connections with the cultural sphere, notably through the Bengal Studios and Motion Pictures Limited, alongside other operational phases recorded in 1970, 1989, and 1993, which involved various financial valuations including ticket prices ranging from thirty to fifty to one hundred taka.

Recognizing its immense cultural and historical value, the government took official steps to protect the estate towards the end of the 20th century. In the year 1989, the Department of Archaeology formally declared the Rose Garden Palace a protected building. This designation placed the responsibility of preserving the 19th-century architectural structure upon the state, ensuring that the legacy of the Tikatuli landmark would be officially safeguarded for future generations to study and appreciate.