Fall of Dhaka: What we gained and lost

The existence of Pakistan is a great blessing for the Muslim Ummah. The purpose of Pakistan was to protect the real Islamic ideological frontiers as the designs of Hindus were clear to our ancestors that they only want to keep Muslims as slaves. Today’s role of Hindus clearly endorses the stance of our forefathers. 

Pakistan came into being with the constant efforts of Muslim leaders but we could not protect the heritage of our forefathers. After the death of the founder of the nation, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, no leader tried to take the country towards its destination.  The wheel of time kept turning, the mafia in the system, the selfish bureaucracy and the dictatorial-minded officers in the institutions became stronger and stronger and the political and public forces became weaker and weaker, which resulted in the split of the country.

The tragedy of the fall of Dhaka was not the result of the selfishness of any two political parties or personalities but was the result of decades of injustice and atrocities. The alliance of East Pakistan and West Pakistan was formed centuries later on the basis of the brilliant teachings of Islam on the basis of brotherhood and brotherhood but our rulers could not maintain equality due to which this ideal unity was sacrificed to selfishness, hatred, malice and envy.

The tragedy of the fall of Dhaka is so tragic and heartbreaking that even after the passage of half of a century its pain can be felt. We have lost the honor and dignity of being the largest Islamic state in the world.

The fall of Dhaka was a tragedy that has passed but a section is still affected by it. That section has not been able to prove for half a century that the tragedy of the fall of Dhaka was against their wishes. The Muslim League consisted of supporters and sympathizers of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Jamaat-e-Islami who were not only against the ideology of the Awami League but also staunch supporters of the two-nation ideology of Pakistan. They were not against Pakistan but most of them were saying that we had voted for Sheikh Mujib to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan not for the split of the country.

This is the class that loved Pakistan immensely and considered Pakistan as part of their faith. Despite the slogans of ‘Long live Pakistan’, this is the class that has joined hands with Pakistan Army soldiers in every military cantonment in East Pakistan including Komla, Jashor, Sylhet, Dhaka, Khalna, Besal, Rajshahi to protect Pakistan.

History tells that these Mujahideen are remembered by the names of volunteers, Al-Shams and Al-Badr who set an example of patriotism that will be remembered forever. It is very easy to take up arms against the enemies and fight them, but it is the most difficult to fight against your own people.

I met dozens of ghazis who fought alongside the Pakistan Army in the 1971 war and were shot by the Mukti Bahini. The only answer they all had was that we and our forefathers had dreamed of an independent Islamic state for which we had to make everlasting sacrifices. How could they be left alone at the mercy of God, for which the land of East Pakistan was narrowed despite the vastness of these Muslims, their property was burnt and a merciless massacre was carried out.

Historians write that the situation was so horrific that it was difficult to describe. The thugs of the Awami League would have killed them there. Ninety thousand personnel were brought by the late Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto but the Pakistan Volunteer Force, Al-Shamsh Force and Al-Badr Force and their families who were fighting with this ninety thousand personnel had no one for care.  They were not only Biharis in the refugee camps but many more Bengali Muslims who remained there who migrated to Pakistan in different ways with barely their lives or whose families were already in West Pakistan. Those who migrated became traitors in the eyes of the Awami League and their land and property were confiscated.

Those who could not travel under duress or went back to their hometowns after hiding for a few years due to influence have not been spared even by the leadership of the Awami League, which is not ready to tolerate those who love Pakistan even after half of a century. Even today the weak and the old are being sentenced to life imprisonment. They are being hanged for false and baseless accusations.

That class is still forced to live a life of cosmopolitanism in Pakistan, the world is wandering towards the stars beyond the moon and this class is still fighting for identity even after half of a century after fall of Dhaka. This is a point of concern for what we lost and what we gained after the fall of Dhaka.