I was suffering from flu for a few days. Owing to the physical weakness I made up my mind not to write for a couple of days. Instead, I would read the book ??The Clash of Civilisations-the remaking of world order?? by S. P. Hantington. The book was presented to me by a close friend. The contents were very interesting and curiously informative. Some how I dozed off but woke up of the call of my wife. There was a phone call for me from ??The Statesman??, Kolkata.
It happened to be the call of one of my friends, a senior reporter of ??The Statesman??. He asked me whether I keep any information of the latest developments in Bangladesh. His voice was very disturbed. He said, the situation in Bangladesh, the news of oppression being carried out on the religious minorities, the Hindus in particularly may have an adverse effect on the people of India, significantly in West Bengal.
I asked him about his opinion on the issue and also whether an adverse effect may fall on West Bengal or not. He said that it was difficult to predict. The people of West Bengal under the Regime of Left Front is very much conscious. Religious disharmony will not be tolerated at all. Most of the newspapers are also very cautious in reporting about the atrocities in Bangladesh. He gave me an example. The influx of Hindus from Bangladesh in West Bengal and Tripura is more than 15,000. But the newspapers are still not eevealing the figures.
I said that although such news are very disturbing and painful but what else could I do staying so far away from Bangladesh, but to write about the anguish that comes to my mind on leaving such horrific incidents.
The reporter from ??The Statesman?? then told me to write of such incidents. He felt astonished that although since 1950 Bangladesh has been raising it?s voice against religious fundamentalism, how could the same nation carry on with oppressions on the Hindus. Hasan Hafigur Rahaman had written the famous book, ??Five stories opposing religious fundamentalism?? and also ??Two more deaths??. These books are still preserved in many libraries of Kolkata.
My friend of Kolkata said that he had not read the book but he has heard of it. More over, it is not Hasan alone but many intellectual persons and politically aware students have stood up stalwartly against the fundamentalist collusion of ??Ayub-Monem?? government in 1964. I still remember the historic headline of your news magazine. ??Purbabanga-Rukhe Darao??. Rising to the occasion participating in the common cause, Muslims, Hindus Buddhists and Christians alike united in those days-giving birth to Bangladesh in 1971.
Alas! What gave rise to such a heinous fundamentalist upheaval in the country now? A country liberated from the torture oppression of racial, fundamental and language barries. Where are those learned people, aware people who express their views with samity, performing their national duties in the best of manner. Big talks are now mere request in the newspapers but very few people are ready to perform and protest against such attrocities. Has all the revolutionary character evaporated? An election which saw the political debacle of Awami League has brought about such heinous ouslaught on the Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. With these questions in mind I decided to call on you from so far a country-India.
I did not answer him. I told him that I will confact him as soon as possible after I put in a little amount of thought into the questions.
Keeping down the telephone receiver I picked up a ??Daily Star?? from my table. The newspaper consisted of a pictonal demonstration. of the demonish acts being carried out in Bangladesh-against the Hindus. Albeit having a gulf of difference with the editor of the newspaper Mohfooj Anam on political ideas, but the undaunting task undertaken by him in publishing such pictures and news analysis did really express a whiplash on the much eroded values and sentiments of our country men. Going through the newspaper if made me remember once again the famous lives composed by Rabindranath (Bengali poem not translated).
Although I don?t have the capability to write another story like Hafijur Rahman?s ??Two more deaths??. But surely I can write a novel based on the torture and oppression of the innumerable Hindus, Christians, Buddhists and tribals stayning in this land, liberated and independent but oppressed in Bangladesh. The book will be titled similarly.
I could not take any further rest on that day. I kept on going through the pages of the newspapers from Bangladesh. In the ?opinion? column of ?Daily Star? I found a writing by an economist settled in USA, Malifuzur Rahman. The topic entitled, ??Communalism Revisited?? consisted of an episode in which a Muslim domestic help in a Hindu family in Dacca on being asked whom she voted for and why ecplied that she has cast her vote in favour of BNP because the Awami League is a Hindu Party.
Personally, I have experience of an educated Muslim Bangladeshi-which is more pernicious in nature. Recently, after completion of his foreign Ph.D. degree he was returning to Bangladesh. He said that he was feeling happier on going back to an independent country. I asked him in astonishment, ??Was Bangladesh not an independent country all these years??? ??No??, he said, ??the Awami League had literally converted Bangladesh into a puppet nation in the hands of India. The vicroty of BNP symbolizes freedom. I was surprised. The striking similarity of an educated person with that of an uneducated domestic help, both from the country I hailed from plunged me into an ocean of shame. Has Bangladesh changed so much? I have not been to my country for the past 20 years. Have I suddenly got up from sleep like Rip Van Winkle only to find my native land changed forever? Neither me nor my country men can recognise each other.
The last 30 years of existence of Bangladesh saw more and more bitterness among the Muslims and the Minorities. The latter is being tortured and oppressed for the last 26 years. One of my school friends a Hindu from Patarhat village recently wrote a letter to me. He asked me to return to my native village and see for myself the state of affirs prevalent in Bangladesh in the past election period. The Durgapuja pandal has been demolished the day before elections. The murthi (Hindu religious icon) has been broken the day after. We did not go out to cast our vote in fear. A fourteen year old daughter of a neighbour was picked up by force. When she was returned, she was just short of a carcass. After the elections we were threatened with dire consequences unless we perform the Durga Puja with all pomp and geity. Cameramen from all newspapers will come to take pictures and we were instructed to hold a smiling face so that no signs of attrocity get sevealed. We were given Rs. 500/- to perform the puja. Should I simle or cry at this?
I have sent a copy of the above letter along with some more translated ones to the British M. P.s and Human Rights Commission. I tried to hold a meeting at East End, London to explain the situation of minorities in Bangladesh. Hearing of my intentions a few of my Bengali friends (two of them with left leanings) asked me over the phone that what debarred me from being sympathetic to the thousands of Muslims being killed in Afghanisthan. And Why I started showing my concern for the minorities in Bangladesh. I asked then in reply whether they were present in the large gathering in London which was demonstrating against the bombings in Afghanistan.
Two of them replied that they could not attend the gathering due to some pre-occupation. I told them that inspite of my arthrities affected knees I participated in the 2 mile walk. I have protested against these bombings in both my English and Bengali writings in several columns. Living in Britain I have described both Blair and Bush as war criminals of the 21st century. The Muslim countries are helping to kill Muslims in Afganistan. Even after expressing such view should I not protest against the attrocities of crime and dishonour being carried out on the minorities in my onw country?
Another friend asked me why did the Hindus and others vote the Awami League to power. I felt speechless at such a mentality expressed by a highly educated Bengali Muslim being in London. I asked him how he came to know that all the communities of minority origin voted for Awami League. And even if they did so in what way were they wrong living in a democracy? They can vote for any party they feel like. Should that be a reason for mindless attack and burtality on these people?
For more than 50 yrs, The Asians living abroad are considered as Labour Party Vote bank. In fact, the Asians, particularly the Bengalis have cast their votes over the years for the Labour Party, be it council elections or General elections. But the Toris never inflicted any torture on the Asians living there for this reason.
I had cited the example of India also. After the independence of India, the minority Muslims were considered as the Congress vote bank. Since the Congress propagated secularism in India, the Muslims considered themselves to be safe and secure under the Congress leadership, with their Religious and Social rights preserved. As soon as the date of the general elections are declared from Delhi, the Imam of the Jama Masjid intives the Muslims to vote for the Congress. But again, they were not oppressed by parties like the B. J. P., Shivsena, Rashtriya Sevaksangh or the Hindu Mahasabha. In the seventies the Imam of Jama Masjid asked the Muslims not to vote for the Congress. For any reason whatever, Indira Gandhi?s Congress faced an election debacle in that year. But the Congress party supporters did not create a backlash on the Muslims. No one was tortured nor oppressed. For reasons totally different in nature, communal disharmony did take place in some of the states in India but not a single Muslim was subjected to heivous crimes and attrocities for voting in favour of a particular party. The Muslims constitute a significent vote bank in West Bengal. But did the party of Mamata Banerjee, Shivsena and BJP combine create a scene of horror after they last the recent elections. Were the Muslims women raped? Did they find their houses gutted and looted? Were the mosques and Idgohs demolished?
I could not change the mentality of some of my Bengali friends living in London even after long sessions of lecture. On 3rd November, I went to attend a meeting at East London. After paying homage to the national leaders of Bangladesh, in due course, followed a discussion as the post election scenario in the country. I said in my lecture that communal riots do occur in India but what has happened in Bangladesh is beyond all aspects of humanity. In short, it is a one sided attack on the minority. They do not have any source of preventing or defending such attacks. The Muslims in India have a leadership to voice their causes. The Hindus in Bangladesh do not have any leadership at all. In Gujrat the Muslims tried to prevent an onslaught on them after communal riots took place. The minorities in Bangladesh are a helpless and hopeless lot except in the hill regions of Chittagong. They are neither organised nor do they have a strong leadership. Neither the interim government nor the BNP-Jamait combine showed any signs of abating these terrorists. The police remains a silent spectator while the home minister tries to hush and cancel the ruthless, uncivilised and inhuman acts of the misereants. It is unfortunate that a few statements given by several leaders were thought to be sufficient. In action, all the leaders kept themselves away. The cultural and women?s society who raised an alarm and went forward to extend help to the oppressed Hindus were threatened with dire consequences by the supporters of B.N.P. -Jamait party Udichi, a party had to retreat after trying to help some oppressed Hindus. A college-student from Dacca wrote an letter to me expressing her grief when she experienced passengers from a passing bus abusing and spitting on women in a procession raising their voices against communal feelings.
After the meeting was over, many people asked me whether the minority people of Bangladesh actually vote for the Awami League or not. I told them, ??Look, it could be so, in most of the places such voters were not allowed to cast their note? Even if they could, as far as I know this votebank had a divided line of opinion. In many districts, the people were dissatisfied with the Awami League and a willingness to vote in favour of B.N.P. was in their minds.??
Many people want to know as to how and why such atrocities took place on the minorities. Do they want Bangladesh to be devoid of Hindus?
I have expressed my personal views to these people. The reason behind such attacks underline a common interest throughout the nation comprising of 85% Muslims. The 15% people comprising of Hindus and others ought to be pushed to the other side of the border-India. the communal riots that are taking place from the east while east Pakistan to the present independent nation Bangladesh are bred from economic reasons. Pushing out the established Hindus from their businessess, grabbing their lands were the intentions of the Muslims-hence making Bangladesh, a nation devoid of Hindus.
But the riots that took place after the independence are all the more political. The parties following a fundamentalist approach consider the Hindus and other minority classes to be a strong votebank in favour of secularism. Unless they are uprooted, Bangladesh can never be converted into a fundamentalist religious state. Just as the Muslims in India always favour the idea of a secular party to be in power. This is for their own safety and security.
After the 1975 political upheanal in Bangladesh, uprooting of secularism and to incorporate Islam as the state religion, in the constitution of the nation by Zia-ur-Rahman and Ershad were high on the agenda. Secularism, according to them is against Islam and the common interest of the people. But Secularism as a weak force is always detrimental to a democratic process in progression. Propagation of anti-India feelings and Jingoism was in the forefront even after the death of Jia-ur-Rahman. Under disguise, communalism was actually propagated by the B.N.P. The blueprint to establish fundamentalism in Bangladesh has been successful as per the agenda of the BNP-Jamait-combine. The second blueprint of removing Hindus in totality is now in the making. The central axis of this political motive is now revolving around the idea of making Bangladesh a fundamentalist nation. The Hindus and other minorities being removed in totality, and for ever, will make this process more easier by destroying the democratic and secular forces forever.
Leave Awami League alone. No other
political democratic force can ever come to Power in this nation.