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Published : 16 Dec 2025, 05:52 PM
A statement issued by Chittagong University to explain controversial remarks made by its pro-vice chancellor on the martyrdom of intellectuals has described Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy and Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq as “leaders” of the Liberation War.
The assessment was published on the university’s official Facebook page on Monday evening, even though both leaders died eight to nine years before the 1971 war of independence.
The controversy began on Sunday, Martyred Intellectuals Day, during a discussion titled “Free Thought, the Liberation War and the Killing of Intellectuals in 1971”, organised by Chattogram University.
Pro-VC (Academic) Mohammed Shamim Uddin Khan spoke at the event.
In his speech, Prof Shamim described the killing of Bangladeshi intellectuals by the Pakistani army as “absurd”. He said it was implausible that Pakistani soldiers would kill intellectuals at a time when they were trying to flee the country.
“When Pakistani soldiers were attempting to escape from our country, the idea that they would kill Bangladeshi intellectuals seems utterly absurd to me,” he said. “At that time, they were fearing for their own lives.”
The remarks triggered an immediate backlash on campus. At around 9:30pm on Sunday, several student organisations, including Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, Bangladesh Democratic Students’ Council and Biplobi Chhatra Maitri, staged a protest march, rejecting the comments “with hatred”.
On Monday afternoon, students under the banner of “All-Party Student Unity” padlocked all gates of the administrative building, demanding an unconditional apology and the resignation of Prof Shamim. The locks were removed at around 10:30pm in view of Victory Day celebrations.
Amid mounting protests, the university administration issued a clarification, saying the vice-chancellor had begun his speech by respectfully remembering the martyred intellectuals and praying for the salvation of all martyrs. It said he had also prayed for those killed in the 1952 Language Movement, the 1971 Liberation War and the July Uprising.
The statement added that he had paid tribute to “all martyrs”, including “leaders of the Liberation War” such as Suhrawardy, Fazlul Huq, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Ziaur Rahman and Commander-in-Chief of the Liberation War MAG Osmani.
Suhrawardy, a former chief minister of undivided Bengal under British rule and later prime minister of Pakistan, died in Beirut on Dec 5, 1963. Fazlul Huq, a former prime minister and chief minister of undivided Bengal, was born on Oct 26, 1873, in Satutia village of Barishal district and died in Dhaka on Apr 27, 1962.
Many have since criticised the university on social media for describing two leaders who died years before 1971 as figures who “led” the Liberation War.
