OMAR KHALED RUMI: To start this story, I must start in 1972 in which year I was born in a pastoral village named Bhabanipur. The exact date was 2nd May of that year though it is 10th January 1975 in all the academic certificates. It was due to hiding some ages in order to get some extra years in hand to get a good job. It reveals the real scenario of our job market where an educated boy becomes a man without getting a perfect job.
Actually, the year I was born in, was the next year of our getting freedom. The situation was so horrible that it can not be described properly even for the witnesses also. My mother, who was a keen observer and also a good reader in her lifetime, sometimes failed to describe all the situations.
It was such a time when a new govt. in a newly independent country took sworn on the 12th of January of that year. There were everywhere panic and uncertainty, hunger, and thirst, crises took its own shape in every possible aspect. A nine-month devastating war-torn country was on the verge of its ruin. The leader, the father of the nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was at stake for what to do. The situation became worse when the misunderstanding between Tajuddin Ahmed and Bangabandhu increased at a significant level.
There was one kind of famine everywhere. My father described to me that he was waiting in a long line in order to collect salty water when salt was out of the market. Trifle things were getting larger shapes as the situation deteriorated very rapidly.
The left insurgency started in 1972 when the Bangladesh Chhatra league, the student wing of Bangladesh Awami League, got split and Jatia Samjtantrik Dal (JSD) was born under the leaders of Serajul Alam Khan, M A Jalil, A S M Abdur Rab, and Shahjahan Siraj. Actually, the reality became tougher when its armed wing led by Colonel Abu Taher and Hasanul Haq Inu started an armed campaign against the government. They wanted to establish scientific socialism as well as a Marxist state. At the same time Maoist Siraj Sikder was active with his Purbo Banglar Sorbohara Party (Proletarian party of East Bengal).
After the tragic incident of 1975, Ziaur Rahman raised to power by a proletariat leader Abu Taher and his partner Hasanul Haq Inu. But it was a matter of great mocking that Ziaur Rahman sentenced Abu Taher to death and the hope of a social revolution ended in smoke.
The short-lived president Khandakar Mushtaq Ahmed wiped out on the very day of 6th November 1975 by a pro-Mujib army personal Khaled Mosharraf and was imprisoned. The death of Khaled Mosharraf and the rise of Ziaur Rahman did not change the fate and it remained there until 1978.
Bangladesh, which was an Indo-USSR block country during the cold war, was got tremendous support from India as well as from USSR during its war against West Pakistan. Not only that during this period Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was also surrounded by his leftist followers like Serajul Alam Khan, M A Jalil, A S M Abdur Rab, and Shahjahan Siraj. All of them are veterans and had good credit during the freedom fighting. When they split, it became a great challenge for Sheikh Mujibur Rahma’`s govt. and made the highest degree of the disaster until 1975 when Mujib died. The real challenge was thrown by the Ganobahini led by Colonel Taher and Hasanul Haq Inu.
Sheikh Mujib included socialism in our constitution and nationalized Industries. It may be in order to show his commitment to socialism. It was necessary at that time because the war was ended only a few days ago and the cold war was going on in full swing. Bangladesh was in the Indo-USSR block and there was no scope of joining Sino-American block with which Pakistan was closely involved.
The bitter truth was that the long three years clash between two factions of the Awami League made the path for the pro-Pakistanis. They were in disguise and used their claws when it was the right time. This failure sent Bangladesh into a horrible situation, helped to lose so many heroes of this golden soil and remained as the reality until 23rd June 1996.
The turning point was after the death of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman our foreign policy was shaken well and setting of a new axis with Sino-American block especially with Pakistan as well as Muslim countries in the The Middle East.
There is a popular belief in our country that neighbor India dominated our political as well as national issues. Is it a myth or a reality? So, the question arrived naturally, was India observing our local political trend? According to my “No” and Never. In 1971, the reality was different and anyone would play that role which India played. In 2012, Bangladesh took the responsibility for 10,000,000 Rohingyas, but it does not mean that there is a serious bi-lateral relations between Myanmar and Bangladesh. I know these two realities are quite different but the situation is the same. If India took the control of Bangladesh then why did Mujib die in such an insecure situation? Actually, India is such a country which did not feel any interest from which they had no benefit at all. The bottomless basket did not attract at all and they remain themselves very far from our issues.
In 1971, Indira Gandhi took the responsibility of war for people due to various reasons. It increased her image in international arena. If India was much concerned about Bangladesh then why Mujib was in need of going Agartala instead of Delhi? Why Tajuddin was in need of managing Delhi during the time of our freedom fighting? Why did Khaled Mosharra fail? Why India did not stop the rise of Ziaur Rahman? Why Sheikh Hasina was not sheltered by India? Why did she struggle a lot to establish her as a leader? How the pro-Pakistanis continued their rule for such a long time.
There was always a rumor that India was behind the Awami League. But I never found them in any situation. A very strong country like India can smash the political conditions of such a poor country like Bangladesh at any time. But they never wished it. History proved to us so. It is only we, the loyal people of Bangladesh, and our patriotic leader sheik Hasina which actually established the country and raised it to such a great height which can not be achieved with someones help.
Sheikh Hasina got support from all the sects of the society due to her profound love and true patriotism for her country and it will be the spirit of the nation in the upcoming days. Never degrade your ability. Keep faith in the power of every common men and woman. Sheikh Hasina has a firm belief in us. And we hope we will believe that no foreign power but we will save our leader from any kind of danger. It is we who empowered our leader. It will be we who will sacrifice our lives in a time of emergency. A successful Bangladesh will be possible if we keep faith in her.
The machination is not still over and the plotters are still in disguise. They are always with us and following us with keen eyesight. By nature, they are very clear and concern about their interests. Such kind of people killed Simon Boliver, Patrice Lumumba, Mahatma Gandhi, Anwar Sadat, Gamal Abdul Nasser and so many leaders who were the blessed son of this soil.
Remember only our unity can stop all the evils. Our sacrifice can save our sovereignty which we achieved after a long struggle. Freedom is not felt when it enjoyed. But it touched when it lost.
Our misery started on 23rd June 1757 at the battle of Plassey when our heroes got defeated by the white British. Since then the plan for colonialism embraced us deeply and many of us have become treacherous. It is a matter of great regret that after losing our freedom we had also lost our purity gradually and become a very poor nation. During the rule of the British, we lost all our hopes and turned ourselves into slaves. Our mental strength was at its nadir and we were surrounded by illiteracy and the political speechwriter of Ziaur Rahman and a very good follower of his Master, Hussain Muhammad Ershad started his reign on 11th December 1983 and continued 6th December 1990. Yes, he is also a pro-Pakistani General and the chairman of the council for measuring the Bangladeshi people who were in Pakistan at the time of war.
