On 27th March at 9.30 pm a gang of terrorists attacked eminent Bangladeshi writer, linguist, poet and litterateur Dr. Humayun Azad and attempted on his life with sharp weapons. He was taken to Dhaka Medical College in a critical condition and later removed to Dhaka Combined Military Hospital.

When an entire nation was stunned, bewildered and outraged by the dastardly attack on eminent litterateur, outspoken author, poet and Professor of Bengali Department of Dhaka University Dr. Humayun Azad on February 27, 2004, and awaiting to know the actual condition of Prof. Azad who was fighting for his life and was on life support system at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH), it was only natural for the Leader of the Opposition and President of Awami League to be at the bedside of the critically wounded Professor and console and express her sympathy with the members of the family during their hours of grave distress.

However shocking and appalling it may sound, the disturbing events that followed on 28th February when the AL Chief Sheikh Hasina headed for CMH and was debarred from entering the CMH and the way her visit to Cantonment area was stonewalled by a series of wicked Manoevres from Jahangir Gate to CMH by the authorities at the behest of Begum Zia has infuriated all conscious citizens of the country. This is simply outrageous, reprehensible and unheard of in the history of independent Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina is not only the leader of the opposition in Parliament enjoying the rank and status of a cabinet minister, a public leader of the highest echelon but also a former Prime Minister. How could the authorities defying all democratic norms prevent a former Prime Minister from visiting a grievously wounded teacher of the University who was critically stabbed with butcher’s knives by the fundamentalist communal forces enjoying the blessings of BNP Chairperson and Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.

On being prevented at the main gate of Dhaka Cantonment by Military Police Sheikh Hasina got down from her jeep and was forced to walk about 4 kilometers with her personal staff to see a near mortally wounded litterateur. To her utter disappointment she found the gates of the CMH being shut on her face. She waited at the gate for quite some time but in vain. This is how a so called machinery of a democratic government deliberately restrained the Leader of the opposition in parliament and a former Prime Minister from performing her humanitarian gesture and moral obligation, something that is an integral part of our culture.

The news of obstructing AL Chief Sheikh Hasina at the Dhaka Cantonment spread like wild fire and infuriated people from all walks of life who strongly criticized and condemned this unprecedented and inhuman deplorable act of the anti-democratic tyrant government of Begum Zia and Nizami alliance.

And, it was against this background that Leader of the Opposition and AL Chief addressed a largely attended press conference the following day on February 29, 2004 at the party Office in Dhanmondi to narrate her humiliating experience of the CMH episode and to strongly denounce the heinous murderous attempt on eminent author and litterateur.

Sheikh Hasina accused the cadre of ruling Khaleda-Nizami alliance government for carrying out the barbaric attack on Prof. Azad saying the progressive thinker and outspoken author earned wrath of the reactionary communal anti liberation elements for his progressive writings. She alleged that the last two days of government’s activities made it amply clear that the evil axis of Khaleda-Nizami alliance had masterminded this carefully crafted plot to wipe out the celebrated author from the face of the earth on the fateful night of February 27. “Police played a dubious role in a bid to cover the real culprits. Why did the police not recover the butcher’s knives used in the attempt on his life on the night of the incident and at whose instruction”, Sheikh Hasina questioned. Expressing her shock Sheikh Hasina wanted to know why those who intended to donate blood were obstructed from entering CMH. The student front of BNP locked the gates of the student’s halls in Dhaka University and issued threats on students who wanted to donate blood for Dr. Azad, revealed Sheikh Hasina.

The reaction of Sheikh Hasina, President of Awami League came a day after Begum Zia in her public address at Bashabo in Dhaka suggested that AL carried out attack on Prof. Azad to make the hartal more forceful and terror based to create panic among people. Condemning vehemently the attack, Sheikh Hasina demanded formation of a neutral mass inquiry commission to identity the real culprits behind this dastardly attack and the reason for the heinous act. She also demanded that a medical board be formed comprising specialist physicians and surgeons, releasing of regular bulletins with a view to relieving the nation of the anxiety regarding the latest condition of the eminent writer now fighting for his life.

She called upon all democratic, progressive and secular political parties and forces as well as professionals and conscious citizens to build up a united resistance against the plot to eliminate liberal intellectuals and government’s conspiracy to mislead the people about the actual incident.

Referring to the demand for a ban on the latest work of Dr. Azad ‘Pak Sar Jamin Sad Bad’ by Jamat-E-Islami legislator, Moulana Sayedee, Sheikh Hasina stated, “It is clear from the writings of Dr. Azad as to who were angered by him and masterminded the attack to silence his the writer’s out spoken criticism of the fanatics.” Since then, AL Chief said, the writer who never sided with any political party had been receiving death threats.

“The attempt on the life of a noted personality like Dr. Azad was not an isolated event rather a continuation of the brutalities, repression and atrocities unleashed by BNP-Jamat alliance on the intellectuals, cultural personalities and journalists who have raised their voice against the misdeeds and misrule” Sheikh Hasina said. The government had turned Bangladesh into a valley of death through wanton acts of killing, rape, looting and arson during their tyrannical rule of two and a half years,” She added.

The Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and AL President expressing her deep concern alleged that the anti-liberation fanatic forces sharing state power with the BNP had been implementing a blue print of killing intellectuals along with state sponsored murders as they did during the War of liberation to avenge their defeat in 1971.” Time has come for people to act now irrespective of their political affiliations to unseat the evil government of Khaleda-Nizami, otherwise such brutal tragedy would recur” Sheikh Hasina said adding that the nation and the great sons of the soil would not be saved. She went on to add “It will be meaningless to raise demands other than the resignation of this tyrant government and the next government to be constituted after the mid term polls that would try all incidents of killing, terrorism, plunder, injustice and repression including the attempt on Dr. Humayun Azad that have taken place during the misrule of BNP-Jamat alliance government.”

She called for stopping harassment on innocent people and find out and arrest the real culprits instead of framing false excuses. In this connection she referred to the bomb blast at Shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal (R) in Sylhet days after Jamat-E-Islami MP Sayedee criticised a function there.

Blasting the government for barring her from attending the critically injured writer at the CMH Sheikh Hasina narrated how she was obstructed from entering CMH to inquire about the condition of Dr. Azad who went there to perform her human duty as a citizen of the country and also as the former Prime Minister. “They stopped me at the gate of CMH. I tried in vain for two hours to enter after walking nearly four kilometers. The authorities at the hospital gate said that they would allow me to visit the critically wounded writer only after the visit of Prime Minister and the President. It was nothing but showing disrespect and an act contrary to the constitution and democracy” she added.

Meanwhile, till writing of this report the BNP-Jamat government has proved how vindictive, inhuman and atrocious they can be by filing a case against the Leader of the Opposition and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other party leaders who accompanied her in Dhaka Cantonment for trying to see critically wounded Professor Humayun Azad. The autocrat and tyrant government of Khaleda-Nizami have time and again exposed their true colors and this time by violating the citizens rights enshrined in the constitution by preventing Sheikh Hasina and their own former President from visiting grievously injured writer and also resisting the journalists from performing their duties. 

Hartal observed : Beginning of simultaneous movement

In the meantime people of all walks of life throughout the country flared up in protest against the attack on Dr. Humayun Azad. Teachers of Dhaka University have been observing indefinite strike or abstaining from work until the concerned culprits involved in the attack are arrested and the lives of teachers, staff and students are made safe. General students of Dhaka University have been making wide protest everyday, through the “Dr. Humayun Azad Maunch” a neutral platform organized to protect free thinking and resist undemocratic forces. Bangladesh Student League and also other student organizations opposing govt. have kept up its continued movement, agitation and assembly. At their call, a strike was observed in all educational institutions of the country on 4th March.

On 3rd March student community of Dhaka University resorted to gherao (surrounding) of Home Ministry to demand immediate arrest of the attackers on Dr. Azad and resignation of Home Minister. Police along with armed terrorist students of Pro-govt. Chhatra Dal and Chhatra Shibir, made lethal attacks on the thousands of processionists. By entering the campus, police mercilessly lathicharged and tearcharged them. They also disgraced the protesting teachers and students alike. 4 Journalists along with more than one hundred others were injured at this attack. Many were arrested. The student terrorists supported by the govt set fire to the Dr. Humayun Azad Maunch and spread this fire to the symbolic coffin made by students of Fine Arts Institute of Dhaka University. These unmasked the true fascist face of the govt.

The civil society also has kept up the protest and move continuing. Intellectuals, teachers, cultural workers, writers, artists publishers, actors-actresses, lawyers, professionals and women community of the country, all combined under the banner of Nagorik committee and The Alliance of all Cultural Organization took part in this movement.

On the other hand, on 6th March at the call of Bangladesh Awami League, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Bangladesh Workers Party and Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal was observed. This Programme was launched simultaneously by 4 political parties based on this full understanding on issues like attack on Dr. Azad, resisting opposition leader Sheikh Hasina to go to CMH and filing of false case against her, political oppression, arrest and demand for resignation of govt. Country wide hartal was peacefully observed on 6th March. As a part of this simultaneous movement, protest and rally was observed on 9th March throughout the country.

In reality, through this simultaneous programme, the existing movement against govt. has acquired a new magnitude. The govt. has been becoming lonely day by day. The govt. has been pushing the country to an inevitable conflict by suppressing democratic rights and breeching the constitutional and humanitarian rights of the people.

Newsletter _______________________
Vol. 3. No. V. March 11, 2004
Bangladesh Awami League Publication