The President

Sheikh Hasina, President, Bangladesh Awami League

SHEIKH HASINA, Honorable Prime Minister of People's Republic of Bangladesh(2nd term), was born on 28 September, 1947 at Tungipara under Gopalganj district. She is the eldest of five children of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founder of independent Bangladesh.

She graduated from the University of Dhaka in 1973. She was elected Vice President of the Students Union of Government Intermediate Girl’s College. She was a member of the students League Unit of Dhaka University and Secretary of the Students League Unit of Rokeya Hall. She actively participated in all the mass movements since her student life.

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman along with the members of his family was martyred on the fateful night of 15 August 1975. Sheikh Hasina and her younger sister Sheikh Rehana were the only survivors as they were in West Germany at that time. Later she went to the United Kingdom from where she started her movement against the autocratic rule in 1980. Sheikh Hasina was unanimously elected President of Bangladesh Awami League in 1981 in her absence, while she was forced to live in exile in New Delhi. Ending six years in exile, she returned home finally on 17 May 1981.

In the parliamentary election held in 1986, she won three seats. She was elected Leader of the Opposition. She led the historic mass movement in 1990 and announced the constitutional formula for peaceful transfer of power through Articles 51 and 56 of the Constitution.

Following the election of 1991 Sheikh Hasina became Leader of the Opposition in the country’s Fifth Parliament, She steered all the political parties in the parliament towards changing the Presidential system into the Parliamentary one.

Sheikh Hasina created awareness among the people and waged a struggle for Non-party Caretaker Government to ensure free and fair polls. Her movement reached the peak after a non-cooperation movement in March 1996 and the provision for Non-party Caretaker Government was incorporated in the Constitution.

At the call of Sheikh Hasina a large number of people of all walks of life expressed solidarity with the movement at the ‘Janatar Mancha’. In the Parliamentary election held on 12 June 1996, Bangladesh Awami League emerged as the majority party and she assumed the office of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh on 23 June 1996.

After becoming the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina adopted a number of pragmatic policies for overall development of the nation including poverty alleviation. During the last four years her government achieved laudable success including signing of the historic 30 year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty with India, signing of historic peace Accord on Chittagong Hill Tracts and inauguration of the Bangabandhu Bridge on the river Jamuna.

Sheikh Hasina was conferred Degree of Doctor of Law by the Boston University of the USA on 6 February 1997 and Honorary Doctor of Law by the Waseda University of Japan on 4 July 1997. She was also conferred the Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy in Liberal Arts by University of Abertay Dundee of the United Kingdom on 25 October, 1997. She was conferred Honorary Degree of Desikottama (Doctor of Literature, honoris causa) by Visva-Bharati University of West Bengal, India on 28 January 1999. She was also conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, on the ground of her distinguished creative contributions in the service of society by the Australian National University on 20 October 1999. Dhaka University conferred Honorary 'Doctor of Laws' degree to Sheikh Hasina on 18 December, 1999 for her outstanding contribution towards peace and democracy. The World famous Catholic University of Brussels, Belgium conferred Honorary Doctorate degree (Doctor Honoris Causa) on Sheikh Hasina on 04 February, 2000 for her decisive role in establishing democracy, protecting human rights and peace. Sheikh Hasina has been conferred Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by the Bridgeport University, USA on 5 September, 2000.

Sheikh Hasina has been awarded UNESCO's Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize for 1998 for her remarkable contribution to bringing peace through ending the 25 years of conflict in Chittagong Hill Tracts with political courage and statesmanship.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina received prestigious Pearl S. Buck Award '99 on 9 April 2000 in recognition of her vision, courage, achievements in political, economic and humanitarian fields by Randolph Macon Women's College of USA. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has been awarded the prestigious CERES' medal to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in recognition to her fight against hunger on 02 August, 1999. The All India Peace Council awarded her 'Mother Teresa Award' in 1998. The Mahatma M K Gandhi Foundation of Oslo, Norway awarded Sheikh Hasina ‘M K Gandhi Award’ for 1998 for her contribution towards promotion of communal understanding, non violent religions harmony and growth of democracy at the level of grassroots in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina was named Paul Haris Fellow by the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International. She was also given Medal of Distinction in 1996-97 and 1998-99 and Head of State Medal in 1996-97 by the International Association of Lions Clubs.

She has authored several books including "Why Are They Street Children", "The Origin of Autocracy", 'Miles to Go", "Elimination of Poverty and Some Thoughts", "People and Democracy", "My Dream My Struggle" and "Development for the Masses." She performed holy Hajj and Umrah several times.

Sheikh Hasina is the Chairperson of "The Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust". She has been helping a lot of poor boys and girls for their education.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, throughout her life has been a strong proponent of peace, freedom and democracy. From an early age, inspired by the lofty ideals and love for the people of her father, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the liberator of Bangladesh, she developed a strong sense of identity for the common people. She always spoke out against oppression and violation of human rights. This commitment has hardened over the years, particularly when her parents, brothers and scores of relatives were brutally assassinated by the misguided members of the military in 1975 soon after the independence of Bangladesh.

Since that time her resolve for democracy and development for the teeming millions of Bangladesh has become firmly entrenched. She struggled for the return of democracy in Bangladesh and fought valiantly for its establishment in the country in every possible manner. She was committed to making Parliament the centre of all national activities.

In 1996, the people of Bangladesh gave her a strong mandate as the Prime Minister of the country. Despite serious resource and constraints and recurrent natural calamity as well as widespread poverty, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, during the first two years of her government, has lived up to her unswerving commitment to the cause of peace, democracy, development and human rights.

Her first act of peace within months of her assumption of office was the initiative for resolution of the long-standing water-sharing dispute with India through a 30-years treaty. This put an end to a very complex regional dispute.

Her visionary idea of a business summit among the political and private sector leaders of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan has added a new chapter in the history of South Asia.

Her dedicated leadership also made possible a peace agreement in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, thereby solving the 23-year old insurgency in the Hill districts of Bangladesh. This peace accord brought an area inhabited by nearly 5 million people out of violence and into a time of peace and development. Though the international media has not given much prominence to this accord, it is uniquely remarkable because the peace accord benefited such a large number of people and the whole area has been brought under development programs following the complete surrender of arms by the insurgents.

Her quest for peace has taken her to India and Pakistan to talk to the leaders of these two countries soon after the nuclear test urging reduction of tension in the region.

Prime Minister Hasina has been a strong advocate for the Culture of Peace at global, regional and national levels. In many major conferences, she espoused the concept of the Culture of Peace, most recently in South Africa at the 12th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) which has a membership of 114 countries. Her initiative has resulted in the first-ever resolution by the Plenary of the United Nations General Assembly on the Culture of Peace. She also provided leadership for the declaration by the UN of the period 2001 to 2010 as the International Decade for Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World.

Prime Minister Hasina’s determination for the eradication of poverty, in particular through wide-ranging microcredit programmes, has been recognized world-wide. Her co-chairpersonship of the Microcredit Summit in February 1997 which resolved to bring 100 million families of the world out of poverty by 2005 focused world attention to her strong commitment to the eradication of poverty and enlistment of the poorest of the poor. She has been a champion of microcredit by spreading the message in major international forums. Her leadership led to the adoption for the first time by UN General Assembly a far-reaching resolution on the role of microcredit in the eradication of poverty.

Along with poverty eradication, she has focused on the empowerment of women and has successfully completed legislation to ensure adequate representation of women in the local government bodies, leading to the election of more than 14,000 women to these bodies in 1997. She has taken major initiatives to stop violence against women and children.

She has also provided leadership in the field of education, particularly for the education of girls in her own country as well as advocating it for global support. Her government has greatly enhanced budgetary allocation for primary education focusing on girls’ education. To improve the quality of life of the people of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has particularly focused on human development, paying special attention to healthcare, family planning, nutrition, women’s rights and survival and development of children. At the UN and other forums, she has been a major voice in support of the cause of children and their rights.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has, all along her life, defended human rights in every possible way. Her active promotion of the rights of women and children has drawn appreciation by both government and NGOs as well as international organizations. She has promoted the right to development as having centrality in the human rights regime. At the NAM Summit in South Africa in 1998, her proposal for a Convention on the Right to Development received welcoming endorsement of the Heads of State and Government. She initiated the establishment of a National Human Rights Commission and the office of Ombudsperson as well as Bangladesh’s recent accession to six major human rights instruments including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Her keen interest resulted in the signature by Bangladesh of the Statute for the International Criminal Court (ICC) and ratification of the Landmines Treaty, being the first country in South Asia to do so.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s initiative resulted in the hosting of the first-ever conference of the Asian parliamentarians devoted to peace and cooperation in Dhaka in September 1999 which elected her as the first President of the Association of Asian Parliaments for peace established at the conference.

At present, as someone who has lost so much personally and has been a victim of oppression and denial of freedom, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stands out as a messenger of peace, democracy, development and human rights. Her leadership of the eighth largest country of the world manifests her concern for the people, seen again during the worst-ever floods in Bangladesh in 1998.

§ Sheikh Hasina is the recipient of the UNESCO Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize for 1998 for her role in bringing peace in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh.

§ Sheikh Hasina has been awarded the Mahatma Gandhi Award for 1998 (Oslo, Norway) for her contribution towards promotion of communal understanding, non-violence, religious harmony and growth of grassroots democracy in Bangladesh.

§ She has been awarded 1999 CERES Medal for contribution to the agriculture development by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.

§ She is the winner of the 1999 Pearl S. Buck Award for "your vision, your courage and your achievements in political, economic and humanitarian spheres capture the spirit of the award and of the woman who inspired it."

§ She has been awarded honorary Doctor of Liberal Arts by the University of Alberta Dundee in the United Kingdom in October 1997.

§ She has been conferred honorary Doctor of Laws by the Boston University in the United States and the Waseda University of Japan.

§ She has been conferred the degree of Desikottama (Doctor of Literature) by the Visva-Bharati University, India founded by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore.

§ She has been conferred honorary Doctor of Laws by the Australian National University in October 1999.

§ Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been conferred honorary Doctor of Laws by Dhaka University in December 1999.

§ She has been conferred honorary Doctor of Laws by the Catholic University of Brussels in February 2000.

§ Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been conferred by the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters for her contribution to world peace and development by the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut in the United States on 5 September 2000.

Under her leadership her party Bangladesh Awami League led grand alliance to win a landslide victory in the 9th Parliament Election on December 29, 2008 with 262 seats out of 299 in the National Parliament.

Sheikh Hasina took oath as Prime Minister of Bangladesh (2nd term) at a ceremony held at Banghabhaban on January 06, 2009.

Syed Ashraful Islam, Secretary

Sayed Ashraful Islam is a Bangladeshi politician and currently the general secretary of the Bangladesh Awami League. He is also the current LGRD minister of Bangladesh. Ashraful was a successful freedom fighter during 1971 libaration war. He is the son of Bangladesh's leading independence leader Syed Nazrul Islam who was acting president during the liberation war. Ahraful is an MA and is a businessman by profession. He was involved in politics from the student life. He became the general secretary of greater Mymensingh district Chhatra League and assistant publicity secretary of the central unit. He also worked as the acting general secretary of Awami League (AL) after the arrest of its general secretary Abdul Jalil. Now he is working as the spokesman of Awami League. He is the son of Sayed Nazrul Islam, acting president of the then Mujibnagar government in 1971.

Ashraful went to the United Kingdom after the killing of his father in prison along with three other national leaders in 1975. He came back to Bangladesh in 1996 and was elected lawmaker from Kishoreganj Sadar in the 7th national elections. He was elected a lawmaker in the 2001 election too. He worked as a member of the parliamentary standing committee on foreign ministry. His electoral pledges include building up developed road and rail link from Dhaka to Kishoreganj.

THE FUTURE LEADER & HOPE OF THE NATION

Sajeeb Wajed Joy : welcome to Bangladesh Awami League

This is the largest online community of Sajeeb Wazed Joy and the credit also goes to the members.

Sajeeb Wazed Joy was born in 1971 during the Bangladesh Liberation War to the eminent nuclear scientist Late Dr. M. A. Wazed Miah and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina Wazed.

Sajeeb Wazed is an IT professional. He is a graduate of St. Joseph's College, an affiliate of Bangalore University and the University of Texas in Arlington, Texas with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering. Now he is studying Masters in Public Administration at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

He is involved with different social and cultural activities. A number of Articles writen by him has been published in different international media including Prestigious Harvard International Review. He is also an Advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

He has been a key negotiators for Bangladesh Awami League on ´the restoration of democracy in Bangladesh with the former interim government.

Sajeeb Wazed Joy is the first Bangladeshi who has been selected as one of 250 Young Global Leaders by the World Economic Forum.

Introduction

The Bangladesh Awami League (AL) (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ আওয়ামী লীগ; translated from FarsiBangladesh People's League), commonly known as the Awami League, is the mainstream center-left, secular political party in Bangladesh. It is also currently the governing party after winning the 2008 Parliamentary elections in Bangladesh.

The Awami League was founded in Dhaka, the former capital of the Pakistani province ofEast Bengal, in 1949 by Bengali nationalists Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani,Shamsul Huq, and later Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. The Awami League was established as the Bengali alternative to the domination of the Muslim League in Pakistan. The party quickly gained massive popular support in East Bengal, later named East Pakistan, and eventually led the forces of Bengali nationalism in the struggle against West Pakistan's military and political establishment. The party under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh, would lead the struggle for independence, first through massive populist and civil disobedience movements, such as the Six Point Movement and 1971 Non-Cooperation Movement, and then during the Bangladesh Liberation War. After the emergence of independent Bangladesh, the Awami League would win the first general elections in 1973 but was overthrown in 1975 after the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.The party was forced by subsequent military regimes into political wilderness and many of its senior leaders and actvists were executed and jailed. After the restoration of democracy in 1990, the Awami League emerged as one of the principal players of Bangladeshi politics.

Amongst the leaders of the Awami League, five have become the President of Bangladesh, four have become the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and one became the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Since the independence of Bangladesh, the party has been under the control of the family of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. His daughter and also the incumbent Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, has been heading the party since 1981.

7th march, 1971 the historical declaration of independence

বঙ্গবন্ধুর ৭ মার্চের ভাষণ

আজ দুঃখ-ভারাক্রান্ত মন নিয়ে আপনাদের সামনে হাজির হয়েছি। আপনারা সবই জানেন এবং বুঝেন।আমরা আমাদের জীবন দিয়ে চেষ্টা করেছি- আজ ঢাকা, চট্টগ্রাম, রংপুর ও যশোরের রাজপথ আমার ভাইয়ের রক্তে রঞ্জিত হয়েছে।

7th March 1971 at racecourse ground

আজ বাংলার মানুষ মুক্তি চায়-তারা বাঁচতে চায়।তারা অধিকার পেতে চায়।নির্বাচনে আপনারা সম্পূর্ণভাবে আমাকে এবং আওয়ামী লীগকে ভোট দিয়ে জয়যুক্ত করেছেন শাসনতন্ত্র রচনার জন্য। আশা ছিল জাতীয় পরিষদ বসবে, আমরা শাসনতন্ত্র তৈরী করবো এবং এই শাসনতন্ত্রে মানুষ তাদের অর্থনৈতিক,রাজনৈতিক ও সাংস্কৃতিক মুক্তি লাভ করবে। কিন্ত ২৩ বছরের ইতিহাস বাংলার মানুষের রক্ত দিয়ে রাজপথ রঞ্জিত করার ইতিহাস। ২৩ বছরের ইতিহাস বাংলার মানুষের মুমুর্ষু আর্তনাদের ইতিহাস, রক্ত দানের করুণ ইতিহাস।নির্যাতিত মানুষের কান্নার ইতিহাস।

১৯৫২ সালে আমরা রক্ত দিয়েছি। ১৯৫৪ সালে নির্বাচনে জয় লাভ করেও ক্ষমতায় বসতে পারিনি।১৯৫৮ সালে দেশে সামরিক শাসন জারি করে আইয়ুব খান দশ বছর আমাদের গোলাম করে রাখলো।১৯৬৬ সালে ৬-দফা দেয়া হলো এবং এর পর এ অপরাধে আমার বহু ভাইকে হত্যা করা হলো।১৯৬৯ সালেগণ-আন্দোলনের মুখে আইয়ুবের পতনের পর ইয়াহিয়া খান এলেন। তিনিবলেলেন, তিনি জনগণের হাতে ক্ষমতা ফিরিয়ে দেবেন, শাসনতন্ত্র দেবেন,আমরা মেনে নিলাম।

Banga beer Kader Siddiqui surrendering his arms Bangabandhu

তার পরের ঘটনা সকলেই জানেন। ইয়াহিয়া খানের সংগে আলোচনা হলো-আমরা তাকে ১৫ ইং ফেব্রুয়ারী জাতীয় পরিষদের অধিবেশন ডাকার অনুরোধ করলাম। কিন্তু 'মেজরিটি'পার্টির নেতা হওয়া সত্ত্বেও তিনি আমার কথা শুনলেন না। শুনলেন সংখ্যালঘুদলের ভুট্টো সাহেবের কথা।আমি শুধু বাংলার মেজরিটিপার্টির নেতা নই, সমগ্র পাকিস্তানের মেজরিটি পার্টির নেতা। ভুট্টো সাহেব বললেন, মার্চের প্রথম সপ্তাহে অধিবেশন ডাকতে, তিনি মার্চের ৩ তারিখে অধিবেশন ডাকলেন।

আমি বললাম, তবুও আমরা জাতীয় পরিষদের অধিবেশনে যাব এবং সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ দল হওয়া সত্বেও কেউ যদি ন্যায্য কথা বলে আমরা তা মেনে নেব, এমনকি তিনি যদি একজনও হ'ন।

জনাব ভুট্টো ঢাকা এসেছিলেন। তাঁর সঙ্গে আলোচনা হলো। ভুট্টো সাহেব বলে গেছেন আলোচনার দরজা বন্ধ নয়; আরো আলোচনা হবে।মওলানা নুরানী ও মুফতি মাহুমুদ সহ পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানের অন্যান্য পার্লামেন্টারী নেতা এলেন, তাদের সঙ্গে আলোচনা হলো- উদ্দেশ্য ছিলো আলাপ-আলোচনা করে শাসনতন্ত্র রচনা করবো।তবে তাদের আমি জানিয়ে দিয়েছি ৬-দফা পরিবর্তনের কোন অধিকার আমার নেই,এটা জনগণের সম্পদ।

কিন্তু ভুট্টো হুমকি দিলেন।তিনি বললেন, এখানে এসে'ডবল জিম্মী' হতে পারবেন না। পরিষদ কসাই খানায় পরিণত হবে। তিনি পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানী সদস্যদের প্রতি হুমকি দিলেন যে, পরিষদের অধিবেশনে যোগ দিলে রক্তপাত করা হবে, তাদের মাথা ভেঙে দেয়া হবে।হত্যা করা হবে। আন্দোলন শুরু হবে পেশোয়ার থেকে করাচী পর্যন্ত। একটি দোকানও খুলতে দেয়া হবেনা।

তা সত্বেও পয়ত্রিশজন পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানী সদস্য এলেন। কিন্ত পয়লা মার্চ ইয়াহিয়া খান পরিষদের অধিবেশন বন্ধ করে দিলেন। দোষ দেয়া হলো, বাংলার মানুষকে, দোষ দেয়া হলো আমাকে, বলা হলো আমার অনমনীয় মনোভাবের জন্যই কিছু হয়নি।

এরপর বাংলার মানুষ প্রতিবাদ মুখর হয়ে উঠলো।আমি শান্তিপূর্ণ সংগ্রাম চালিয়ে যাবার জন্য হরতাল ডাকলাম। জনগণ আপন ইচ্ছায় পথে নেমে এলো।

কিন্তু কি পেলাম আমরা? বাংলার নিরস্ত্র জনগণের উপর অস্ত্র ব্যবহার করাহলো। আমাদের হাতে অস্ত্র নেই। কিন্তু আমরা পয়সা দিয়ে যে অস্ত্র কিনে দিয়েছি বহিঃশত্রুর হাত থেকে দেশকে রক্ষা করার জন্যে, আজ সে অস্ত্র ব্যবহার করা হচ্ছে আমার নিরীহ মানুষদের হত্যা করার জন্য। আমার দুঃখী জনতার উপর চলছে গুলী।

আমরা বাংলার সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠমানুষ যখনই দেশের শাসনভার গ্রহণ করতেচে য়েছি, তখনই ষড়যন্ত্র চলেছে-আমাদের উপর ঝাঁপিয়ে পড়েছে।

ইয়াহিয়া খান বলেছেন, আমি নাকি ১০ই মার্চ তারিখে গোলটেবিল বৈঠকে যোগদান করতে চেয়েছি,তাঁর সাথে টেলিফোন আমার আলাপ হয়েছে। আমি তাঁকে বলেছি আপনি দেশের প্রেসিডেণ্ট, ঢাকায় আসুন দেখুন আমার গরীব জনসাধারণকে কি ভাবে হত্যা করা হয়েছে, আমার মায়ের কোল খালি করাহয়েছে ।

আমি আগেই বলে দিয়েছিকোন গোলটেবিল বৈঠক হবেনা। কিসের গোল টেবিল বৈঠক? কার গোল টেবিল বৈঠক? যারা আমার মা'বোনের কোল শূন্য করেছে তাদের সাথে বসবো আমি গোল টেবিল বৈঠকে ?

তেসরা তারিখে পল্টনে আমি অসহযোগের আহবান জানালাম। বললাম, অফিস-আদালত,খাজনা-ট্যাক্স বন্ধ করুন।আপনারা মেনে নিলেন।

হঠাৎ আমার সঙ্গে বাআমাদের সঙ্গে আলোচনা না করে একজনের সঙ্গে পাঁচ ঘণ্টা বৈঠকের পর ইয়াহিয়া খান যে বক্তৃতা করেছেন, তাতে সমস্ত দোষ আমার ওবাংলার মানুষের উপর চাপিয়ে দিয়েছেন। দোষ করলেন ভুট্টো- কিন্তু গুলী করে মারা হলো আমার বাংলার মানুষকে। আমরা গুলী খাই, দোষ আমাদের-আমরা বুলেট খাই, দোষ আমাদের।

ইয়াহিয়া সাহেব অধিবেশন ডেকেছেন। কিন্ত আমার দাবী সামরিক আইন প্রত্যাহার করতে হবে, সেনাবাহিনীকে ব্যারাকে ফিরিয়ে নিতে হবে, হত্যার তদন্ত করতে হবে। তারপর বিবেচনা করে দেখবো পরিষদে বসবো কি বসনো না। এ দাবী মানার আগে পরিষদে বসার কোন প্রশ্নই ওঠে না, জনগণ আমাকে সে অধিকার দেয়নি। রক্তের দাগ এখনো শুকায়নি, শহীদদের রক্ত মাড়িয়ে ২৫ তারিখে পরিষদে যোগ দিতে যাব না।

ভাইয়েরা, আমার উপর বিশ্বাস আছে? আমি প্রধান মন্ত্রীত্ব চাইনা, মানুষের অধিকার চাই। প্রধানমন্ত্রীত্বের লোভ দেখিয়ে আমাকে নিতে পারেনি, ফাঁসীর কাষ্ঠে ঝুলিয়ে নিতে পারেনি। আপনারা রক্তদিয়ে আমাকে ষড়যন্ত্র মামলা থেকে মুক্ত করে এনেছিলেন। সেদিন এই রেসকোর্সে আমি বলেছিলাম, রক্তের ঋণ আমি রক্ত দিয়ে শোধ করবো; মনে আছে? আজো আমি রক্ত দিয়েই রক্তের ঋণ শোধ করতে প্রস্তুত।

আমি বলে দিতে চাই, আজ থেকে কোর্ট-কাচারী,হাইকোর্ট, সুপ্রীম কোর্ট,অফিস, আদালত, শিক্ষা প্রতিষ্ঠান সমুহ অনির্দিষ্ট-কালের জন্য বন্ধ থাকবে। কোন কর্মচারী অফিস যাবেন না। এ আমার নির্দেশ।

গরীবের যাতে কষ্ট না হয়তার জন্য রিক্সা চলবে, ট্রেন চলবে আর সব চলবে।

ট্রেন চলবে- তবে সেনা বাহিনী আনা-নেয়াকরা যাবে না। করলে যদি কোন দূর্ঘটনা ঘটে তার জন্য আমি দায়ী থাকবোনা।

সেক্রেটারীয়েট, সুপ্রীম কোর্ট, হাইকোর্ট জজকোর্টসহ সরকারী, আধা-সরকারী এবং স্বায়ত্তশাসিত সংস্থাগুলো বন্ধ থাকবে।শুধু পূর্ব বাংলার আদান-প্রদানের ব্যাঙ্কগুলো দু-ঘন্টার জন্য খোলা থাকবে। পূর্ব বাংলা থেকে পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানে টাকা যেতে পারবেন না। টেলিগ্রাফ, টেলিফোন বাংলাদেশের মধ্যে চালু থাকবে। তবে, সাংবাদিকরা বহির্বিশ্বে সংবাদ পাঠাতে পারবেন।

এদেশের মানুষকে খতম করা হচ্ছে, বুঝে শুনে চলবেন। দরকার হলে সমস্ত চাকা বন্ধ করে দেয়া হবে।

আপনারা নির্ধারিত সময়ে বেতন নিয়ে আসবেন। যদি একটিও গুলী চলে তাহলে বাংলার ঘরে ঘরে দূর্গ গড়ে তুলবেন। যার যা আছে তাই নিয়ে শত্রুর মোকাবেলা করতে হবে। রাস্তা ঘাট বন্ধ করে দিতে হবে। আমরা তাদের ভাতে মারবো-পানিতে মারবো।হুকুম দিবার জন্য আমি যদিনা থাকি, আমার সহকর্মীরা যদি না থাকেন, আপনারা আন্দোলন চালিয়ে যাবেন।

তোমরা আমার ভাই,তোমরা ব্যারাকে থাকো,কেউ কিছু বলবেনা। গুলী চালালে আর ভাল হবে না।সাত কোটি মানুষকে আর দাবীয়ে রাখতে পারবা না।বাঙ্গালী মরতে শিখেছে, তাদের কেউ দাবাতে পারবেনা।

শহীদদের ও আহতদের পরিবারের জন্য আওয়ামীলীগ সাহায্যে কমিটি করেছে। আমরা সাহায্যের চেষ্টা করবো। আপনারা যেযা পারেন দিয়ে যাবেন।

সাত দিনের হরতালে যে সবশ্রমিক অংশ গ্রহণ করেছেন, কারফিউর জন্য কাজ করতে পারেননি-শিল্পমালিকরা তাদের পুরো বেতন দিয়ে দেবেন।

সরকারী কর্মচারীদের বলি, আমি যা বলি তা মানতে হবে। কাউকে যেন অফিসে দেখা না যায়। এ দেশের মুক্তি না হওয়া পর্যন্ত খাজনা-ট্যাক্স বন্ধ থাকবে।আপনারা আমার উপর ছেড়ে দেন, আন্দোলন কিভাবে করতে হয় আমি জানি।

কিন্তু হুঁশিয়ার, একটা কথামনে রাখবেন, আমাদের মধ্যে শত্রু ঢুকেছে, ছদ্মবেশে তারা আত্মকহলের সৃষ্টিকরতে চায়।বাঙ্গালী-অবাঙ্গালী,হিন্দু-মুসলমান সবাই আমাদের ভাই, তাদের রক্ষা করার দায়িত্ব আমাদের।

রেডিও, টেলিভিশন ও সংবাদপত্র যদি আমাদের আন্দোলনের খবর প্রচার নাকরে তবে কোন বাঙ্গালী রেডিও এবং টেলিভিশনে যাবেন না।

শান্তিপূর্ণভাবে ফয়সালা করতে পারলে ভাই ভাই হিসাবে বাস করার সম্ভাবনা আছে, তা না হলে নেই।বাড়াবাড়ি করবেন না, মুখ দেখাদেখিও বন্ধ হয়ে যেতে পারে।

প্রস্তুত থাকবেন, ঠাণ্ডা হলেচলবে না। আন্দোলন ও বিক্ষোভ চালিয়ে যাবেন।আন্দোলন ঝিমিয়ে পড়লেতারা আমাদের উপর ঝাঁপিয়ে পড়বে। শৃংখলা বজায় রাখুন। শৃংখলা ছাড়াকোন জাতি সংগ্রামে জয়লাভ করতে পারে না।

আমার অনুরোধ প্রত্যেকগ্রামে, মহল্লায়, ইউনিয়নে, আওয়ামী লীগের নেতৃত্বে সংগ্রাম কমিটি গড়ে তুলুন।হাতে যা আছে তাই নিয়েপ্রস্তুত থাকুন। রক্ত যখনদিয়েছি, রক্ত আরও দেবো।এদেশের মানুষকে মুক্ত করে ছাড়বো ইনশাল্লাহ।

এবারের সংগ্রাম, মুক্তিরসংগ্রাম, এবারের সংগ্রাম,স্বাধীনতার সংগ্রাম।

জয় বাংলা

http://muktimusician.blog.co.in 
http://bangabandhu.webs.com
http://sheikhhasina.webs.com
http://sheikhhasina.blog.com

We fought for freedom of the nation

KM Shahidul Alam, freedom fighter

Biography of Bangabandu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

http://skmujiburrahman.blogspot.com

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman By SSajjad Khan

Some of the biographers of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman have said that he was the most astonishing and much talked about leader in South East Asia. In an age of military coup d'etat he attained power through elections and mass upsurge; in an age of decline of democracy he firmly established democracy in one of the countries of Asia and in an age of "Strong Men" he spurned the opportunity of becoming a dictator and instead chose to become the elected Prime Minister. The way he turned a nonviolent non-cooperation movement of unarmed masses into an armed struggle that successfully brought into reality the liberation of a new nation and the creation of a new state in barely ten months will remain a wonder of history.

March 7, 1971 was a day of supreme test in his life. The leaders of the military junta of Pakistan were on that day eagerly waiting to trap him. A contingent of heavily armed Pakistani troops was poised near the Suhrawardy Uddyan to wait for an order to start massacre the people on the plea of suppressing a revolt that Bangabandhu was about to declare against Pakistan at the meeting he was going to address there.

In fact, the entire Bangladesh was then in a state of revolt. The sudden postponement of the scheduled session of the newly elected National Assembly and the reluctance of the military leaders to transfer power to the elected representatives of the people had driven the people to desperation and they were seeking the opportunity to break away from the Pakistani colonial rule. Nearly two million freedom-loving people who assembled at the Suhrawardy Uddyan that day had but one wish, only one demand : "Bangabandhu, declare independence; give us the command for the battle for national liberation."

The Father of the Nation spoke in a calm and restrained language. It was more like a sacred hymn than a speech spellbinding two million people. His historic declaration in the meeting on that day was : "Our struggle this time is for freedom. Our struggle this time is for independence". This was the declaration of independence for Bangladeshis, for their liberation struggle. But he did not give the Pakistani military rulers the opportunity to use their arms. He foiled their carefully laid scheme. In the same speech he took care to put forward four proposals for the solution of the problem in a constitutional way and kept the door open for negotiations.

He was taller than the average Bangalee, had the same dark complexion and spoke in a vibrant voice. But what special power gave him the magnetic qualities of drawing a mass of seventy-five million people to him? This question stirred the minds of many people at home and abroad. He was not educated abroad nor was he born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Yet he was as dear to the educated Bangladeshi compatriots as to the illiterate and half-educated masses. He inspired the intelligentsia and the working classes alike. He did not climb to leadership overnight. It has been a slow and steady process. He attained his enviable eminence the hard way. He began as an humble worker at the bottom rung. He arduously climbed to the position of a national leader and rose to the very pinnacle as the Father of the Nation.

He was born in a middle class Bangalee family and his political leadership arose out of the aims and aspirations of the ordinary Bangalee. He was inseparably linked with the hopes and aspirations, the joys and sorrows, the travails and triumphs of these ordinary people. He spoke their language. He gave voice to their hopes and aspirations. Year after year he spent the best days of his youth behind the prison bars. That is why his power was the power of the people.

Whoever has once come in contact with him has admitted that his personality, a mingling of gentle and stern qualities, had an uncanny magical attraction. He is as simple as a child yet unbending in courage; as strong as steel when necessary. Coupled with this was his incomparable strength of mind and steadfast devotion to his own ideals. He was a nationalist in character, a democrat in behavior, a socialist in belief and a secularist by conviction.

Bangabandbu had to move forward step by step in his struggle. He had to change the tactics and the slogans of the movement several times. It can thus be said that though the period of direct struggle for freedom was only nine months, the indirect period of this struggle spread over 25 years. This 25-year period can be divided into several stages. These are : (a) organizational stage of the democratic movement; (b) movement against BPC or Basic Principles Committee's report; (c) language movement; (d) forging of electoral unity and the victory of the democratic United Front; (e) military rule; (f) movement against the military rule; (g) movement for autonomy; (h) the historic Six-Point movement; (i) electoral victory and the non-cooperation movement; and j) armed liberation struggle.

Bangabandhu has been closely associated with every phase of this 25-year long struggle for freedom and independence. Bangladesh and Bangabandhu have, therefore, become inseparable. We cannot speak of one without the other. 

While still adolescent, he took his first political lesson from Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy, a leading political personality of the then Bangladesh. It was in Faridpur that Young Suhrawardy and adolescent Sheikh Mujib came to know each other. Both of them were attracted to each other from that first acquaintance. Adolescent Mujib grew up under the gathering gloom of the storm-tossed politics of the sub-continent and the Second World War. He witnessed the ravages of war and the stark realities of the 1943 famine and the epidemics in which about five million people lost their lives. The miserable plight of the people under colonial rule turned him into a rebel.

He passed his matriculation examination in 1942. His studies had been interrupted for about four years due to an attack of beriberi. He got acquainted with the revolutionary activities of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose during the Hallwell Monument movement in Calcutta. Suhrawardy's staunchly logical approach and Subhash Bose's spirit of dedication influenced him immensely. He was influenced by another great leader, "Sher-e-Bangla" A.K. Fazlul Huq and his political philosophy of the plain fare ("dal-bhat") for all. At that very early stage he realised that in a poor exploited country political programmes must be complimentary to economic programmes.

He completed his college education in Calcutta. His sojourn to the prisons began in his teens. He first spent six days in a prison for participating in a political movement. While he was a student in Calcutta, he moved the natural eddies of the political movements of the subcontinent and got himself associated with the Muslim League and the Pakistan movement. But soon after the creation of Pakistan and the partition of Bengal in 1947, he realised that his people had not attained real independence. What had happened was a change of masters. Bangladesh would have to make preparations for independence movement a second time.

He graduated in the same year and came to develop a deep acquaintance with the works of Bernard Shaw. Karl Marx and Rabindranath Tagore. The horizon of his thought process began to expand from that time. He realised that Bangladesh was a geographical unit and its geographical nationalism was separate; its economic, political and cultural characters were also completely different from those of the western part of Pakistan. Over and above, linguistic differences and a physical distance of about 1,500 miles between them made the two parts of Pakistan totally separate from each other.

He could, therefore, realize that by keeping the two areas under the forced bonds of one state structure in the name of religious nationalism, rigid political control and economic exploitation would be perpetrated on the eastern part. This would come as a matter of course because the central capital and the economic and military headquarters of Pakistan had all been set up in the western part.

The new realization and political thinking took roots in his mind as early as 1948. He was then a student in the Law faculty of Dhaka University. A movement was launched that very year on the demand to make Bengali one of the state languages of Pakistan. In fact, this movement can be termed as the first stirrings of the movement of an independent Bangladesh. This demand for cultural freedom gradually led to the demand for national independence. During that language movement, Bangabandhu was arrested on March 11, 1948. During the blood-drenched language movement of 1952 also he was pushed behind the bars and took up leadership of the movement from inside the jail.

Bangabandhu was also in the forefront of the movement against the killing of policemen by the army in Dhaka in 1948. He was imprisoned for lending his support to the strike movement of the lower grade employees of Dhaka University. He was expelled from the University even before he came out of the prison.

In 1950, Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan of Pakistan announced the Basic Principles Committee's report for framing a constitution. This report manipulated to turn the majority of Bangladesh into a minority through subterfuges, and to make Urdu the state language. There was a spontaneous countrywide upsurge in Bangladesh against this report and the Bangabandhu was at its forefront.

Bangabandhu was elected Joint Secretary of the newly formed political organization, the Awami League. Previously he had been the leader of the progressive students' organization, the Chhatra League. In 1953 he was elected General Secretary of the Awami League.

Elections to the then Provincial Assembly of Bangladesh was held in 1954. A democratic electoral alliance-the United Front-against the ruling Muslim League was forged during that election. The 21 -point demand of the United Front included full regional autonomy for Bangladesh and making of Bengali one of the state languages.

The United Front won the elections on the basis of the 21 -point programme and Bangabandhu was elected member of the Provincial Assembly. He joined the Huq Cabinet of the United Front as its youngest Minister. The anti-people ruling clique of Pakistan dissolved this Cabinet soon and the Bangabandhu was thrown into prison.

In 1955 he was elected member of the second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. He was again appointed a Minister when the Awami League formed the Provincial Cabinet in 1956. But he voluntarily left the Cabinet in July 1957 in order to devote himself fully to the task of reorganizing the party.

General Ayub Khan staged a military coup in Pakistan in 1958 and the Bangabandhu was arrested on various charges and innumerable cases were framed against him. He got back his freedom after 14 months of solitary confinement but was re-arrested in February 1962.

THE AWAMI LEAGUE

The Bangabandhu revived the Awami League after the death of Mr. H.S. Suhrawardy in 1963. By that time the military Junta had lifted the ban on political parties. Thus the Awami League began its constitutional struggle under the leadership of the Bangabandhu to realize the demand for self-determination of the Bangalees.

The Bangabandhu placed his historic Six-Point programme at a political conference in Lahore in 1966. This programme called for a federal state structure for Pakistan and full autonomy for Bangladesh with a parliamentary democratic system. The Six- Point programme became so popular in a short while that it was turned into the Charter of Freedom for the Bangladeshis or their Magna Carta. The Army Junta of Pakistan threatened to use the language of weapons against the Six-Point movement and the Bangabandhu was arrested under the Defence Rules on May 8, 1966. The powerful mass upsurge that burst forth throughout Bangladesh in protest against this arrest of the Bangabandhu came to be known as June Movement.

On June 17, 1968 he was removed from Dhaka Central Jail to Kurmitola Cantonment and was charged with conspiring to make Bangladesh independent with the help of India. This case is known as the Agartala Conspiracy case. He was the No. 1 accused in the case. While the trial was in progress in the court of a military tribunal the administration of the military junta collapsed as a consequence of a great mass upsurge in Bangladesh at the beginning of 1969.

As a result, he was released together with all the other co-accused. The case was withdrawn and the Bangabandhu was invited to a Round Table Conference at the capital of Pakistan. At this conference President Ayub Khan requested Bangabandhu to accept the Prime Ministership of Pakistan. Bangabandhu rejected the offer and remained firm in his demand for the acceptance of his Six-Point programme.

President Ayub Khan stepped down from power on March 25, 1969 and General Yahya Khan took over the leadership of the army junta, Apprehending a new movement in Bangladesh he promised to re-establish democratic rule in Pakistan and made arrangements for holding the first general elections in December, 1970. Under the leadership of the Bangabandhu. the Awami League won an absolute majority in the elections. The military junta was unnerved by the results of the elections. The conspiracy then started to prevent the transfer of power. The session of the newly elected National Assembly was scheduled for March 3, 1971. By an order on March 1, General Yahya postponed this session.

It acted like a spark to the powder keg; entire Bangladesh burst into flames of political upheaval. The historic non-cooperation movement began. For all practical purposes Bangabandhu took over the civil -administration of Bangladesh. The military junta however began to increase the strength of its armed forces in Bangladesh secretly and to kill innocent Bangalees at different places.

Yahya Khan came to Dhaka by the middle of March to have talks with Bangabandhu. Mr. Zulflqar Ali Bhutto and other leaders also came a few days later. When everybody was feeling that the talks were going to be successful Yahya Khan stealthily left Dhaka in the evening of March 25. The barbarous genocide throughout Bangladesh began from that midnight.

Bangabandhu was arrested at midnight of March 25 and was flown to the western wing. But before he was arrested, he formally declared independence of Bangladesh and issued instructions to all Bangladeshis, including those in the armed forces and in the police to take up arms to drive out the Pakistani occupation forces.

For ten long months from March 1971 to January 1972 Bangabandhu was confined in a death-cell in the Pakistani prison. His countrymen did not even know if he was dead or alive. Still, stirred by his inspiration, the nation threw itself heart and soul into the hick of the liberation war and by the middle of December the whole of Bangladesh was cleared of the occupation forces.

Freed from the Pakistani prison, the Bangabandhu came back home on January 10, 1972 and stepped down from the Presidentship and took up the responsibility as the Prime Minister of independent Bangladesh on 12 January 1972. Immediately he took steps for the formulation of the Constitution of the country and to place it before the Constituent Assembly. After the passage of the Constitution on 4 November 1972, his party won an overwhelming majority in the elections held on 7 March 1973 and took up the responsibility of running the administration of the country for another five-year term. After the fourth amendment of the constitution on 25 January 1975 (changing the form of Government from the Parliamentary to the Presidential system), the Bangabandhu entered upon the office of the President of Bangladesh. Within three years of independence he put the war-ravaged country along the path of political stability and economic reconstruction. On 15 August 1975, he along with all the members (excluding two daughters, Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana who were abroad) of his family were brutally assassinated by a splinter group of armed forces.

The Bangabandhu is the Father of the Nation. His state philosophy has four pillars: Nationalism, Democracy, Socialism and Secularism. His foreign policy opened up new horizons of peace, cooperation and non-alignment throughout Asia. He visited many countries of Asia and Europe including China and the Soviet Union. Statesmen of many countries of Asia countries were his personal friends. He was awarded Julio Curie Peace Prize for his being a symbol of world peace and cooperation. In the eyes of the people in the third world, he is the harbinger of peace and development in Asia.

Next Generation Leader Sajeeb Wajed Joy

The cute baby is our honorable prime minister

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http://sajeeb.blogspot.com/2007/02/awami-league-and-religion.html

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Bangabandhu Memorial Music

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MUKTHIR GAAN 3 ALBUM Now in CD Available

MUKTISHENA IN 1971 SECTORWISE

Pakistani Army surrendering

Mukti Bahini (Bengali: মুক্তি বাহিনী "Liberation Ar my"), also termed as the "Freedom Fighters", collectively refers to the armed organizations who fought alongside the Indian Armed Forces against the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War. It was dynamically formed by (mostly) Bengali regulars and civilians after the proclamation of Bangladesh's independence on March 26, 1971. Subsequently by mid-April 1971 the former members of East Pakistan Armed Forces formed the "Bangladesh Armed Forces" and M. A. G. Osmani assumed its command. The civilian groups continued to assist the armed forces during the war. After the war "Mukti Bahini" became the general term to refer to all forces (military and civilian) of former East Pakistani origin fighting against the Pakistani armed forces during the Bangladesh Liberation War. Often Mukti Bahini operated as an effectiveguerrilla force to keep their enemies on the run. Inspired in part by revolutionary Che Guevara,^[1] they have been compared to the French Maquis, Viet Cong, and the guerrillas of Josip Broz Tito in their tactics and effectiveness.

Origins

Although Mukti Bahini was formed to fight off the military crackdown by the Pakistan army on March 25, 1971 during the climax of Bangladesh freedom movement,The crisis had already started taking shape with anti-Ayub uprising in 1969 and precipitated into a political crisis at the height of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's Six-point movement beginning in the 1970s. In March 1971, rising political discontent and cultural nationalism in what was then East Pakistan (later, Bangladesh) was met by harsh suppressive force from the ruling elite of the West Pakistan establishment^[4] in what came to be termed Operation Searchlight.

The massive crackdown by West Pakistan forces became an important factor in precipitating the civil war as a sea of refugees (estimated at the time to be about 10million) came flooding to the eastern provinces of India. Facing a mounting humanitarian crisis, India started actively aiding and re-organising what was by this time already the nucleus of the Mukti Bahini.

The immediate precursor of the Mukti Bahini was Mukti Fauj ("Fauj" is the Urdu originally from Persian borrowed from Arabic for "Brigade" exported into several languages in South Asia including Bengali), which was preceded denominationally by the sangram parishads formed in the cities and villages by the student and youth leaderships in early March 1971. When and how the Mukti Fauj was created is not clear nor is the later adoption of the name Mukti Bahini. It is, however, certain that the names originated generically refer to the people who fought in the Bangladesh liberation war.

Since the anti-Ayub uprising in 1969 and during the height of Mujib's six points movement, there was a growing movement among the Bengalis in East Pakistan to become independent driven by the nationalists, radicals and leftists. After the election of 1970, the subsequent crisis strengthened that feeling within the people. Sheikh Mujib himself was facing immense pressure from most prominent political quarters, especially the ultra-nationalist young student leaders, to declare independence without delay. Armed preparations were going on by some leftist and nationalist groups, and the Bengali army officers and soldiers were prepared to defect. At the call of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman the people of East Pakistan joined in a peaceful movement for non-cooperation from 3 March 1971, and 7th march and onward, which lasted up to midnight of 25 March 1971. On this date the Pakistani Army cracked down upon unarmed civilians to take control of the administration. During the army crackdown on the night of March 25, 1971, there were reports of small scale resistance notably at Iqbal Hall, Dhaka University and at the Rajarbagh Police Headquarter. The latter initially put a strong fight against the Pakistan Army. As political events gathered momentum, the stage was set for a clash between the Pakistan Army and the Bengali people vowing for independence. Bengali members of the Army were also defecting and gathering in various pockets of the country.

All these early fights were disorganized and futile because of the greater military strength of the Pakistani Army. Outside of Dhaka, resistance was more successful. The earliest move towards forming a liberation army officially came from the declaration of independence made by Major Ziaur Rahman of East Bengal Regiment on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. In the declaration made from Kalurghat Betar Kendra (Chittagong) on March 27, 1971, Zia assumed the title of "provisional commander in chief of the Bangladesh Liberation Army", though his area of operation remained confined to Chittagong and Noakhali areas. Major Ziaur Rahman's declaration on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman marked a break with Pakistan by the Bengali units of the army.

Organization during war

Though prolonged Bengali resistance was not anticipated by Pakistani planners of Operation Searchlight, when the Pakistani Army cracked down upon the population, the Mukti Bahini were becoming increasingly visible. Headed by Colonel (later, General) M. A. G. Osmani, a retired Pakistani Army officer, this band was raised as Mujib's action arm and security force before assuming the character of a conventional guerrilla force. After the declaration of independence, the Pakistani military sought to quell them, but increasing numbers of Bengali soldiers defected to the underground "Bangladesh army". These Bengali units slowly merged into the Mukti Bahini and bolstered their weaponry.

On April 12, 1971 Colonel (later General) M. A. G. Osmani assumed the command of armed forces at Teliapara (Sylhet) headquarters. Osmani was made the commander-in-chief of Bangladesh Armed Forces on April 17, 1971. Serious initiative for organising the Bangladesh liberation army was taken between 11-17 July. In a meeting of the sector commanders in Kolkata, four important resolutions were taken in consideration of strategic aspects of the war, existing problems and future course of resistance. These were:

§  Composition and tactics of the combatants would be as follows:

§  Guerrilla teams comprising 5 to 10 trained members would be sent to specific areas of Bangladesh with specific assignments

§  Combat soldiers would carry out frontal attacks against the enemy. Between 50 and 100 per cent would carry arms. Intelligence volunteers would be engaged to collect information about the enemy. 30 percent of these people would be equipped with weapons;

§  The regular forces would be organised into battalions and sectors.

§  The following strategies would be adopted while carrying out military operations against the enemy

§  A large number of guerrillas would be sent out inside Bangladesh to carry out raids and ambushes;

§  Industries would be brought to a standstill and electricity supply would be disrupted;

§  Pakistanis would be obstructed in exporting manufactured goods and raw materials;

§  Communication network would be destroyed in order to obstruct enemy movements;

§  Enemy forces would be forced to disperse and scatter for strategic gains;

§  The whole area of Bangladesh would be divided into 11 sectors.

Other than the organizations of Mukti Bahini who were generally trained and armed by the Indian Army, there were independent guerrilla groups led by individual leaders, either nationalists or leftists, who were successfully controlling some areas.

[Regular and irregular forces

The regular forces later called Niomita Bahini (regular force) consisted of the members of the East Bengal Regiments (EBR), East Pakistan Rifles (EPR, later BDR), police, other paramilitary forces and the general people who were commanded by the army commanders in the 11 sectors all over Bangladesh. Three major forces: Z-Force under the command of Major (later, Major General) Ziaur Rahman, K-Force under Major (later Brigadier ) Khaled Mosharraf and S-Force under Major (later Major General) K M Shafiullah were raised afterwards to fight battles in efficient manners. The irregular forces, generally called Gono Bahini (people's army), were those who were trained more in guerrilla warfare than the conventional one.

The irregular forces, which after initial training joined different sectors, consisted of the students, peasants, workers and political activists. Irregular forces were initiated inside Bangladesh province to adopt guerrilla warfare against the enemy. The regular forces were engaged in fighting the usual way.

The Mukti Bahini obtained strength from the two main streams of fighting elements: members of armed forces of erstwhileEast Pakistan and members of the urban and rural youths many of whome were volunteers. Other groups included members of sangram parishads, youth and student wings of Awami League, NAP, Leftist-Communist Parties and radical groups. The Mukti Bahini had several factions. The foremost one was organized by the members of the regular armed force, who were generally known as Freedom Fighters (FF). Then there was Bangladesh Liberation Forces (BLF) led by four youth leaders of the political wing of Sheikh Mujib's Awami League and the third one generally known as Special Guerrilla Forces (SGF) led by the Communist Party of Bangladesh, National Awami Party, and Bangladesh Students Union. They then jointly launched guerrilla operations against the Pakistani Army causing heavy damages and casualties. This setback prompted the Pakistani Army to induct Razakars, Al-Badrs andAl-Shams (mostly members of Jamaat-e-Islami and other Islamist groups), as well as other Bengalis who opposed independence, and Biharis who had settled during the time of partition. This helped Pakistan stem the tide somewhat as the monsoon approached in the months of June and July.

Bangladesh Navy

Bangladesh Navy was constituted in August 1971. Initially, there were two ships and 45 navy personnel. These ships carried out many successful raids on the Pakistani fleet. But both of these ships were mistakenly hit and destroyed by Indian fighter planes on 10 December 1971, when they were about to launch a major attack on Mongla seaport.

[

Bangladesh Air Force

Bangladesh Air Force started functioning on 28 September at Dimapur in Nagaland, under the command of Air Commodore AK Khondakar. Initially, it consisted of 17 officers, 50 technicians, 2 planes and 1 helicopter. The Air Force carried out more than twelve sorties against Pakistani targets and was quite successful during the initial stages of the Indian attack in early December.

Independent forces

In addition, there were also some independent forces that fought in various regions of Bangladesh and liberated many areas. These included Mujib Bahini which was organized in India. Major General Oban of the Indian Army and Student League leaders Serajul Alam Khan,Sheikh Fazlul Haque Mani, Kazi Arif Ahmed, Abdur Razzak, Tofael Ahmed, A S M Abdur Rob, Shahjahan Siraj, Nur E Alam Siddiqi, and Abdul Quddus Makhon were organisers of this Bahini. There was the Kaderia Bahini under Kader Siddique of Tangail, Afsar Bahini and Aftab Bahini of Mymensingh, Latif Mirza Bahini of Sirajganj, Akbar Hossain Bahini of Jhinaidah, Quddus Molla and Gafur Bahini of Barisal, Hemayet Bahini under Hemayet Uddin of Faridpur. There were also several communist/leftist groups who clashed with the Pakistan Army, and controlled some areas independently.

Leftist factions

In addition,there were some other groups of freedom fighters which were controlled by the Leftist parties and groups including the NAP and Communist Parties. Among others, Siraj Sikder raised a strong guerrilla force which fought several battles with the Pakistani soldiers in Payarabagan, Barisal. Although there were ideological conflicts among the communist parties (most notably, split into pro-soviet and pro-Chinese factions and widespread split within the pro-Chinese faction) on deciding a common action in the context of Bangladesh Liberation, many of the individuals and leaders of Mukti Bahini were deeply influenced by the leftist ideology in general. There were strong concerns among the Indian authority and members of the Awami League led provisional government not to lose the control of the liberation war to the leftists. Nevertheless many leftists overcame these internal and external difficulties and actively participated in the Liberation war with the main nucleus of the Mukti Bahini.

Broadcast warriors

Performers at Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra like M. R. Akhtar Mukul, Apel Mahmud (Singer), Abdul Jabbar (Singer), Mohammad Shah were great inspirations for the freedom-fighters in 1971, and were considered to be Broadcast Warriors.