A.H.M. Zehadul Karim
General Yahya Khan was the second military ruler of Pakistan who seized power from his predecessor, General Ayub Khan on 25 March, 1969 and later held a national election in the country in 1970. Awami League won this election with a landslide victory capturing 160 parliamentary positions in the National Assembly of Pakistan which gave Mujib a clear right to form the Government in the country but it was not conceded by Bhutto from West Pakistan who won 81 seats in the Parliament; it is a clear mockery for democracy which is constitutionally unacceptable. Consequently, a deliberate political deadlock was purposefully created by Zulfiquar Ali Bhutto with indirect support from Pakistani Army and they intentionally denied the legal democratic claim of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahamn to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan which is contemptuously ridiculing. Following this squabble, Yahya deceived Bangabandhu and his countrymen in the name of negotiations through Round Table Conference for couple of days. While Mujib after the election was repeatedly asking to call for the Parliament, Yahya Khan after making so many fowl strategies finally postponed the Assembly suddenly on 1st March 1971 which further aggravated the political crisis in the eastern part. In this context, a kind of suspicion in the mind of the East Pakistanis about the unwillingness on the part of Pakistani army to hand over power to the civil government especially to Sheikh Mujib appeared to come true. Hence, it was followed by a huge public resentment creating a total outburst in East Pakistan and Mujib had to come up with his new plans immediately. People became violent and spontaneous demonstrations in the form of population inundation from all parts of the country further accelerated the protest and Mujib called for a public meeting at Dhaka Paltan Maidan on 3rd March declaring a civil disobedience or non-cooperation movement in the country instantly. Historically, it is evidenced that “Non-Cooperation Movement of Mujib of March 1971” is spontaneous that people throughout the country responded to it very enthusiastically. In fact, the Non-Cooperation Movement of March-1971 both informally and formally was started on March 2 as Dhaka was on hartal on that day and subsequently the hartal was called for 3rd March throughout the country; these were absolutely peaceful as instructed by the leader. While delivering the lecture on 3rd March at Paltan, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman formally announced a programme for non-cooperation movement all over the country and chooses to deliver a lecture at the Ramna Racecourse Maidan (now Suhrawardy Uddan) which was scheduled for 7th March 1971.
Meanwhile we may remind our reader that prior to it, a student alliance front was opened under the title of Sarbadaliya Chhatra Sangram Parishad (All Party Students Action Committee) on 5 January 1969 under the dynamic leadership of Mr. Tofael Ahmed who was a veteran leader of Chatro League and an indomitable orator of the time; also simultaneously he was holding the position of the Vice President of Dhaka University Central Students Union (DUCSU). This Student Action Committee adopted an eleven-point programme playing a pre-eminent and paramount role in organizing and consolidating a strong mass movement throughout the country since its emergence in the last few months. Among several academic, social, economic and political demands, the eleven-point movement primarily focused on release of all detainees and political prisoners, including those of the Agartala Conspiracy Case. We the students of Dhaka University were the initiators of this movement which included most of the students’ faction only excluding Islami Chatro Shibir.
As per our discussion, we continue linking our readers with the discourse on non-cooperation movement of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as delivered in his historic 7th March Speech of 1971 at Ramna Racecourse Maidan; this extempore speech was so valorous deliberation that it created a sensation in the whole world which is now recognized and included by UNESCO as part of World’s Documentary Heritage. Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman emphatically said in his speech,
I do not want the position of Prime Minister. I wish to see that the rights of the people of this country are established. Let me make it clear without ambiguity, that beginning from today, in Bangladesh, all courts, magistracies, government offices and educational institutions will remain closed for an indefinite period. In order that poor do not suffer, in order that my people do not go through pain, all other activities will continue, and it will not come within the ambit of the general strike from tomorrow…. Rickshaws, horse carriages, trains and river vessels will ply. The Supreme Court, High Court, Judge’s Court, semi-government offices, WAPDA,-nothing will work. Employees will collect their salaries on the twenty-eighth….The struggle this time is the struggle for our emancipation. The struggle this time is the struggle for independence. Joi Bangla!
As the non-cooperation movement was continuing, this historic 7th March Speech of Bangabandhu was very meaningful and indicative which provided a clear direction of the future strategies regarding non-cooperation movement in one way and the other, it was a kind of clear declaration for independence of the country. More specifically, the non-cooperation movement at that time was a necessity as Pakistan Government lost its democratic morals being unethical which was requiring a civil disobedience and protest under the leadership of Bangabandhu. But the movement however was not haphazard; rather, it was very systematic well-calculated providing all necessary directives for the people and accordingly Mujib came up with a listing of thirty-five specific directives with their subtitles for specific clarity which emerged in the written-form on March 15, 1971.
But it may be noted here that all these directives however, already were informally enduring and these were almost the same, which people of Bangladesh had started abiding since the beginning of non-cooperation movement. They came in writing specifically so that people do not get misdirected at any stage of the movement, nor someone tries to divert it purposefully to damaging the image of it. This non-cooperation movement was absolutely non-violent, and was not at all targeted to destroying any property or resources of the country.
But all of a sudden, on March 25, 1971, the Pakistani Army came out of the barracks and cantonments with their guns and mortars killing millions of people including Bengali armed forces personnel and police forces at a gruesome genocide on the fateful night of 25 March, 1971 at Dhaka and other parts of the country. In the face of this catastrophe, Mujib voicing the sentiment and desire of the people of his region declared independence of Bangladesh before his arrest on 26th March, 1971 and asked the countrymen to face these brutal forces unless and until they are fully driven out of the country. Bangabandhu declared,
This may be my last message; from today, Bangladesh is independent. I call upon the people of Bangladesh wherever you might be and with whatever you have, to resist the army of occupation to the last. Your fight must go on until the last soldier of the Pakistan occupation army is expelled from the soil of Bangladesh and the final victory is achieved.
Bangabandhu’s message of Declaration of Independence was transmitted on the air and simultaneously it was sent to all parts of the country including Chittagong shortly after midnight of 25th March, i.e. early hours of 26th March, 1971. This was followed by ten months of genocide and brutality of Pakistani army creating a conflict between Bangladeshi Freedom Fighters and Pakistani Army that culminated in India’s intervention which resulted in the liberation of Bangladesh. A total surrender of Pakistani Generals in the eastern part of the country was only possible because of the reason that people of this country were motivated by the 7th March speech of Bangabandhu and the country finally got independence.
Prof Dr. A.H.M. Zehadul Karim is a former vice chancellor of a public university in Bangladesh, now teaches at Jagannath University).
