Call to build a bright Bangladesh

Evoking a somber, contemplative mood, Dhaka University commemorated the dark night of Mar 25, 1971 with a call to build an enlightened Bangladesh.

Known as the living liberation war museum, the university was the first to come under the attack by Pakistani occupation forces on this very night.

Different organisations of the university held programmes after laying flowers at the Central Shaheed Minar and at the altar of mass grave at Jagannat Hall on the campus.

Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee began their rally at the foot of the Shaheed Minar at 8pm and then took out a torch procession to the mass grave.

Hundreds of people kindled candles at the altar of the mass grave and staged silent candle-light processions..

At the rally, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed hoped that trial of war crimes would be completed and the Jamaat-e-Islami that opposed the War of Independence banned.

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu said, “We have started our journey back to the War of Liberation again. This war means either death or freedom.”

One of the war commanders, Lt Gen KM Shafiullah also spoke at the rally.

Gigantic pictures of the stooges were painted on the road from the northern gate to the southern inside the hall, which people trampled in the torch procession.

After the evening fell, symbolic bloodied corpses were put at various places of the hall, which took back the spectators to the milieu of the fateful night in a shimmering light.

Songs of awakening were sung beside the mass grave from 7pm. Installed at the hall beforehand, torches were lit at 11pm.

The Sector Commanders’ Forum, a platform of 1971 war commanders, formally lit candles at the mass grave at 11:59pm and then held their programme marking the dark night after putting out the candles at the stroke of midnight.

They will observe this programme at the Shikha Chirantan (Eternal Flames) in Dhaka's Surhawardy Udyan as well as elsewhere in the country.

The Pakistani military initiated a crackdown under Operation Searchlight on the unarmed civilians to suppress the Bengali uprising.

Prof Ayesha Begum of Dhaka University’s Islamic History and Culture said eight teachers had lost their lives in the fateful night.

It could not be known how many people of Dhaka University had died, but names of 102 students and 28 employees are on the martyrs’ list.

Bangalees took up arms to fight back the Pakistanis on that very dark night leading to the independence of Bangladesh after nine months.