Mirza Fakhrul recalls 1971 memories as Liberation War veteran

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said that as a then left-leaning activist, he responded immediately to the call of duty after March 25, 1971, along with his comrades. However, he claimed that the Awami League’s opposition for political reasons exposed them to troubles during the initial days of the war as freedom fighters.

"As we were linked to left-leaning politics at that time, the Awami League, as well as Indian authorities, started to consider us enemies," Mirza Fakhrul told BSS in a recent interview.

He added, "They put in all their efforts to debar us from engaging in the Liberation War. They virtually waited for scopes to harass us. It was really difficult to bypass such obstacles to carry out duties."

Fakhrul, however, said the then West Bengal government later allocated their group a location to establish a youth camp. Subsequently, the then Chief Minister of Bihar, Karpoori Thakur, extended his hand to organise some more youth camps and also provided clothing for the left-leaning freedom fighters.

"Subsequently, when we got ourselves more organised, India’s central government engaged with us and arranged facilities for our training at Dehradun (a city currently in India’s Uttarakhand state)," he said.

Fakhrul said that at the onset of the Liberation War, he was in his mid-20s and had just secured his master’s degree while residing in his hometown, Thakurgaon, then a sub-division under Dinajpur district.

He recalled that a unit of the then East Pakistan Rifles (EPR), a paramilitary frontier force, was stationed at Thakurgaon, with most of its personnel being Bengalis, though its commanding officer was a West Pakistani military officer.

Fakhrul said that even before the nationwide crackdown on the night of March 25, gunfire had already begun in Thakurgaon on the morning of that day, claiming the lives of three or four people. That night, the EPR enforced a curfew in the town.

He recalled that although initially tens of thousands of people took to the streets to express their outrage, after some casualties, they retreated indoors. "Those of us who were involved in the movement during the pre-Liberation War period went underground," he said.

Fakhrul said from his secret refuge at a house along with some comrades, they came to know that resistance against Pakistani troops had begun in different districts.

He also recalled that on the night of March 25, they heard an announcement by then Major Ziaur Rahman and, on the next day, details of the declaration of independence, which prompted them to come out of hiding and call upon the people to take to the streets.

"We went to the SDPO (a now abolished police officer rank meaning sub-divisional police officer) and asked him to open the arsenal, from where we took some weapons," said the politician.

Subsequently, he said, a section of EPR soldiers revolted and "took shelter at the same place we were staying. With their assistance, we dismantled a bridge that connected the highway from Syedpur to Thakurgaon to bar Pakistani soldiers."

The next morning, a group of Bengali soldiers from the East Bengal Regiment (EBR) arrived at the scene along with an officer, Captain Naser, who years later became the chief of National Security Intelligence (NSI) during Ziaur Rahman's rule.

Fakhrul said a military command was formed under Major Nazrul of the EPR, who was stationed in Dinajpur, and they initially took some defensive steps with available weapons.

"At this stage," he said, "we established a control room in Thakurgaon town and simultaneously organized some makeshift arms training programs for the Liberation War."

But Fakhrul recalled that on April 14, 1971, the Pakistani troops regrouped and attacked the entire Dinajpur area, launching a counter-shelling campaign that also demolished the resistance fighters’ headquarters.

This development prompted the Bengali military and paramilitary troops to leave Thakurgaon and establish a position in Panchagarh, adjacent to the Indian border. Many civilians followed them.

"We, however, did not take refuge there (Panchagarh). We went to India through the Thukrabari border, crossing the Nagar River. My entire family also went to India," Fakhrul said.

He said, as a matter of fact, all those who were preparing for the Liberation War crossed the border, and acquaintances on the other side of the frontier extended shelter to them.

Fakhrul said that, along with some comrades, he took refuge in the sub-divisional town of Islampur in West Dinajpur of India’s West Bengal state and started living at a cycle store owned by one Dilip.

He said the living space at Dilip’s shop was very tiny, where they used to sleep in a small room behind an almirah at night. "The space was so small that one could just lay his head somehow. Seven of us, including my uncle Bablu Mirza, used to stay there."

The veteran politician recalled that at that time, their group was trying to raise a youth camp with Indian government support. Later, the West Bengal government shifted them to Islampur High School, where they subsequently lived and continued to organize youths on the border.

He said that at one stage, their group contacted Bihar’s then Chief Minister Karpoori Thakur, who extended his support for setting up some more youth training camps and provided necessary clothing for them.

"The name of one of the camps was Thukrabari Youth Camp, where the training began under the leadership of Camp Commander Subhash of the Border Security Force (BSF)," Fakhrul added.

Gradually, the Indian central government engaged with the group and arranged facilities for training at different locations, with a special camp in Dehradun.

"We mobilised our boys and recruited them for training there," Fakhrul said, describing his role as a coordinator.

He said the Bangladesh Liberation Force later carried out the major task of recruitment and "that is how we worked."

Fakhrul said the declaration by Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman virtually marked the launch of the Liberation War, but in the past 15 years, it has been denied, even though everyone in the country at the time knew it.

"This was the reality, and the real history can never be erased," he said.

Fakhrul said Sheikh Mujib was captured by the Pakistanis and taken into their custody, while Awami League leaders initially took refuge in India and were slow to assume leadership.

"They (Awami League leaders) took a long time to take leadership in organising the Liberation War even after going to India. At that time, people like us who were active in leftist politics were exposed to danger, as they were reluctant to recognise us," he said.

The elderly politician said the Awami League leaders even had left-leaning activists arrested by Indian intelligence agencies. "I myself had to appear in (Indian) police stations several times."

"This is why our leftist organisations developed a front under the leadership of Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, and we began to work under its banner. People like Haidar Akbar Khan Rono, Rashed Khan Menon, and Kazi Zafar Ahmed were there (in that front)," the BNP secretary general said.

Asked about the role of his father Mirza Ruhul Amin in 1971, as the Awami League repeatedly claims he was a 'razakar' during the Liberation War, Fakhrul said his father belonged to the Muslim League before the 1947 partition and years later joined the BNP.

"My father was a very progressive man and he was never a reactionary person... he was a very popular man who served as the municipal chairman for about 25 years," he said, adding that he was also a major patron of women's education and led the establishment of a girls' school and college in Thakurgaon.

"We took him to Islampur (in India), and he stayed there for some time even after the Liberation War. So, there is no scope to question his role or claim that he was a razakar. There is no proof of that either," Fakhrul said.

Asked whether they got the country they wanted and for which they had fought, he said, "No, we did not get the Bangladesh we fought for."

"We were fighting for the country not only from March 26 (1971). Our struggle began much earlier, from the time we had been dreaming of a social system free of discrimination and exploitation. But today we are not in that place," Fakhrul said.

The BNP secretary general, however, said the struggle for the freedom of the people of a country never fails.

"We also feel that the Liberation War, as a people's war, will never fail (eventually)," he added.