December 14 is Martyred Intellectuals Day. On the night of March 25, 1971, the Pakistani invasion forces planned to kill intellectuals and massacre innocent unarmed Bengalis. From the very beginning of the war, Pakistani invaders made a list of intellectuals with the help of their local accomplices -- Razakar, Al-Badar, Al-Shams -- and started targeting individuals according to that list. Many teachers of Dhaka University were killed on the night of March 25.
When the Pakistani invaders carried out the barbaric massacre on the unarmed people of this country, on the night of March 25, our intellectual society became their first victim. When the defeat of the Pakistani forces was imminent in the final phase of the Liberation War, they indulged in yet another round of killing intellectuals.
So, our Liberation War started and ended with the death of intellectuals.
Major General Rao Farman Ali was the main planner of the plan to wipe out intellectuals on behalf of the Pakistani forces. After independence, the handwritten diary of this Pakistani Major General was found in the destroyed Bangabhaban, containing the names of many dead and living intellectuals. Even after all these years, it is not possible to make a complete list of exactly how many intellectuals were martyred in the Liberation War, but an official initiative has been taken to make such a list. Recently, the government approved a list of 1,222 people as part of the complete list of martyred intellectuals in the Liberation War.
A curfew was issued in Dhaka on December 4, 1971. From December 10, preparations were made. And on 14 December the plan was executed. Targeted individuals including academics, writers, journalists, artists, doctors, engineers, lawyers, writers, researchers were forcibly kidnapped by the Pakistani invaders and their local allies. About 200 intellectuals were abducted from their homes that day. They were blindfolded and taken to cells in Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Nakhalpara, Rajarbag and others where they were subjected to inhumane torture. Later they were brutally killed in Rayerbazar and Mirpur slaughterhouses.
After independence in 1972, an approximate list of Zila based martyred academics and lawyers was published. The list contained 968 academicians not affiliated with the university, and 21 university teachers. According to the information available onBanglapedia, among the martyred intellectuals were 991 academics, 13 journalists, 49 doctors, 42 lawyers, and 16 cultural activists, artists, and engineers.
Some notable among those martyred are -- Professor Munier Chowdhury, Professor Govinda Chandra Dev, Professor Jyotirmoy Guhathakurta, Professor Mofazzal Haider Chowdhury, Professor Anwar Pasha, Professor Ghiasuddin Ahmed, Fazlur Rahman Khan, Humayun Kabir, Dr Fazle Rabbi, Dr Mohammad Murtaza, Dr Shamsuddin Ahmed, Professor Rashidul Hasan, Dr Santosh Bhattacharjee, Dr Mohammad Shafi, journalist Sirajuddin Hossain, Shahidullah Kaiser, Nizamuddin Ahmed, Khandaker Abu Taleb, ANM Golam Mostafa, Shaheed Saber, Syed Nazmul Haque, Zahir Raihan, Altaf Mahmud, Dhirendranath Datta, Randaprasad Saha, Dr Abdul Khair, Dr Sirajul Haque Khan, Dr Faizal Mahi, Dr Abdul Alim Chowdhury, Selina Parvin, Professor M Habibur Rahman, poet Meherunnesa, lawyer Nazmul Haque Sarkar etc.
The question may arise -- why did the Pakistani invaders plan to selectively kill the intellectuals among the common people? Why did they decide to kill people engaged in intellectual professions including academics, writers, journalists, lawyers, artists, doctors, engineers, writers, researchers? And at the cusp of their defeat, why did they again choose to exterminate the intellectual society?
They realized that a nation develops along the path shown by its intellectuals. A nation cannot prosper without experts to lead; to remove intellectuals means to take away a nation's potential to achieve greatness. Pakistani invaders understood this very well. So, they struck their first and last blow, targeting those with high distinction. Through this massacre, the Pakistani forces looked to cripple the Bengali state and make it difficult to build a nation.
The dream of the Pakistani invaders had come true. By killing intellectuals, they have set Bangladesh back by almost half a century. This was seen in the times after independence. Due to the lack of intellectuals, there was a lack of national unity and solidarity, a dictatorship developed, and the state structure collapsed.
At that time, when the initiative was taken to establish a one-party rule in independent Bangladesh, there was no protest against it, let alone a movement. The reason for this was our intellectual bankruptcy.
When irregularities arose in the state under Pakistan, the first revolt against it was felt in the minds of the intellectuals.The intellectual's voice would break out in protest. But in today's independent Bangladesh, such responsibility of intellectuals is not observed. Today's intellectuals are involved in various political parties, but they have forgotten what their true duty towards the society and state is.
If we look at history, we can see how responsible and vocal our intellectuals were before independence. We must re-establish the intellectual movement. It is the moral responsibility of intellectuals to call out the falsehoods and reveal the truth. But the number of those responsible intellectuals are sparse. However, many patriots and humanists continue to perform their duties in spite of adversities.
The contribution of intellectuals towards the development of a state's thoughts and ideas is undeniable. In the absence of proper direction from intellectuals, all sectors are now covered with irregularities. An "intellectual crisis" is now rampant in the country. That is why, even after 51 years of independence, we are still some way from achieving the ultimate liberation.
On Martyred Intellectuals Day, we remember the heroic sons of our nation with great respect. The wound of their loss is still carrying the homeland. It is hoped that an "intellectual spirit" will be awakened in the generations leading forward.
Emran Emon is a researcher, journalist, and columnist.
