Zafar Wazed :
(From yesterday’s issus)
Taking the chance of such instability, many ill-motivated people were trying to secure their self-interest. Purbo Bangla Communist Party leader Abdul Haque in 1974 met with Bhutto in Dhaka and sought financial and arms support to topple the government of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. This is stated in Bhutto’s autobiography.
When Bhutto was staying in Dhaka, he held multiple meetings with some pro-Chinese parties and groups. They mainly discussed on ousting the government. Some misguided army personnel, who were involved with the killing, were tried later. Some others are still fugitive. The plotters’ plan was far-reaching. After 1975, they succeeded to cripple the country and dampen its spirit of liberation. The plotters could sense that their evil-motive would not be successful, if Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is alive. It is now clear that domestic and external forces joined hands together to execute the heinous plot. Different political parties, including a chunk of opportunists in Awami League, created the ground for executing the plot.
Though the trial of Bangabandhu murder is over, the plotters and many of their associates are still untried. Those, who conspired the assassination as well as executed the terrible deed, are being discussed for 47 years. If the actions, political involvement and ideals of those plotters are analyzed, some enlightening clues are bound to unravel. Even a number of researchers possess distinguished amount of information in this regard. It is merely a decision that has to be taken to try those conspirators. Moreover, the issue of forming investigation commission of Bangabandhu murder case has been discussed for long. Even it is said that, in many countries there are investigation commission apart from judicial trial. This particular commissions are formed to unfold the entire conspiracy in broad daylight. As a result, the state would learn to avoid such anomaly in future. We have observed that after the assassination of John. F. Kennedy, Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, Rajib Gandhi, this type of commissions was formed. However, it is never too late for us to expose the real plot of Bangabandhu murder. There is no lack of data, documentaries and even eye witnesses.
Khandakar Moshtaq, the person who appreciated the murderers as ‘Patriots’, is the real culprit and has been benefited most. He has shared his privileges with General Zia. These two benefited people are most likely to be the conspirators. In spite of difference in designation, they were united by the same interest. If a thorough examination is done over their attitude to the Awami league during the war of liberation, their military motivations and their roles, it will be clear that they were the real mapmakers of Bangabandhu murder.
Both Moshtaq and Zia played negative roles during the war. Moshtaq, who was the foreign minister of Mujibnagar government intended to build confederation with Pakistan. Further, he has been under close surveillance of the government. There was a complain against Mushtaq that his role during the war was of an opponent. Even, he was excluded from the team sent to the UN by the acting government. According to former Justice Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, Zia and Mushtaq were directly involved in the murder. Their roles during and after the war suggest that they were not for the independence of Bangladesh. Besides, Zia’s ideas were those of a Pakistani. His boyhood, education, youth all were spent in Pakistan which shaped his Pakistani ideals. He came to Bangladesh in the middle of year 1969. Interestingly, when this member of Pakistan intelligence fled to Bangladesh, Pakistan did not take any action against him! On the contrary, they kept his wife in Dhaka cantonment with utmost care. However, the real face of Zia was unmasked during his taking over power after the killing of Bangabandhu. Thus, it is inevitable to form an investigation commission to unveil the conspirators as Zia and Mushtaq.
If we look back, we will be able to observe that, as soon as Zia usurped the power, he started to turn Bangladesh into Pakistan. His first attack was to turn the historical place of Bangabandhu’s 7th March speech to a children’s amusement park! In addition, to protect the killers, Zia and Moshtaq announced indemnity. They did it to protect themselves too. Their deed proves that the murder was a political act. This explains how they spent their regime smoothly. Their Pakistani values are well reflected in their action. Furthermore, during the war, their entente with Pakistan, US, along with Taher Uddin Tagore and Mahbub Ali Chashi and their alliance worked to hasten the confederation proposal with Pakistan. Nevertheless, Bangladeshi government handled it sternly. We had to exchange the proposal as a pre requisition of Bangabandhu’s release from jail.
Still, Moshtaq kept on his anti-liberation activities. It seems that, Zia and Moshtaq were counting the moments down when the assassins brutally attacked Bangabandhu and his family. Otherwise, how come they became so active right after the horrendous act? How could he, right after Dalim’s announcement on Bangladesh radio, form the new government without any delay? It was observed that, the chiefs of three major military offices along with the BDR delivered speech on radio supporting the murder; followed by the newly formed government. As if they knew what was going to happen, what would be the follow up and even the aftermaths. Everything happened so fast! In fact, General Zia’s duty was to inform the senior officers in case he knows about any treason, which he did not perform. As a military chief he was supposed to take action, but he did not do anything about it! On the contrary his response to the news of the president’s murder (informed by another office) was, “So what?” It is worth mentioning that Faruk, the self-claimed assassin, has said in his 1976 interview with ITV that Zia was involved in the issue. However, few military officers were fired who were spotted to be directly involved in the matter. Unfortunately, most of them were saved and even, rewarded by Zia and Moshtaq, who assigned those criminals at foreign embassies.
In fact, Zia’s ambition made him engaged to the crime. It is not unknown that Moshtaq and his collaborators used to hold meetings in Comilla BARD joined by some Bengali officers, who were transferred to Bangladesh CSP from Pakistani administration. It is not unlikely that they would nurture Pakistani sentiments. One of them is buried there. Another is still fugitive. He was associated with Mahbub Ali Chashi during the war of liberation. Though most of the officers fled from Pakistan to Bangladesh to join the war, after the war they stood against Bangladesh itself. Even one formed Revolutionary Soldiers’ Association and led the massacre of 7th November. In fact, most of those soldiers were trained at Kabul, Pakistan and right after the independence they started to play the role of spy of Pakistan. Another point to note is that, our Chief Commander Osmani was displeased with Zia’s pro-Pakistani attitude during war.
However, the choice of 15th August for this brutal act is worth of notice. Bangabandhu was supposed to join Dhaka University Convocation as the Chancellor that very day. To dismiss the grand event there were bombing on the afternoon of 14th August. Even a strike was called by an armed political party. To sum up, an ambience of terror was created. Unfortunately, It proves the frailty of the security system. Astonishingly, the security system of Bangabandhu’s residence was also changed. The charge was given to a troop led by a pro-Pakistani officer. To conclude, both national and international forces conspired the royal murder. Still, many people and organizations that were involved in the plot are unidentified. It’s high time to unfold the mystery and punish the hidden killers. Therefore, there is no alternative to the formation of investigation commission.
(Concluded)
(The writer is the Director General (DG) of Press Institute Bangladesh (PIB) and Ekushey Padak winning journalist).
