Page 11 - MUJIB100- Magazine on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

You are a poet—a far-sighted person. You are absolutely right! Yes, I learnt from the mistakes Bengal's last 1952 On January 26, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan Khawaja Nazimuddin declared at a public
Nawab had made in his life me. mee ng in the Paltan Maidan that Urdu would be the only state language of Pakistan. While in
cap vity, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman stayed in constant touch with those waging the movement to
* realize Bangla as one of the state languages. He issued key direc ves to make the movement a
Bangabandhu—you s ll hadn't become Bangabandhu then—but this is how I love to address you and this success even from the confines of his prison. On February 16, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman started a
is what gives me joy. hunger strike unto death that lasted for 11 days and was released on February 27. On February 21,
A er “The Six Point Demand”, the charter of independence for Bengalis was announced in 1966, in 1967 I the agitated students came out on strike to press hard their demand to make Bangla as one of the
wrote a long poem dedicated to you (“For a Cover”). state languages of Pakistan in defiance of the curfew enforced by the authori es. Salam, Barkat,
* Rafiq, Jabbar, Shafiur and many others were martyred when the police fired on a rally. In a
Are you talking about the poem you published in the Daily Sangbad? statement released from the jail, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman expressed deep sorrow for those who lost
their lives and con nued protes ng the unjust police firing through hunger strike. The same year he
* visited China to a end World Peace Conference, where he delivered a resounding speech in Bangla,
Yes, this poem was published on 12 November, 1967 in the literary pages of the Daily Sangbad. At that taking the cause of the mother language movement to a global audience.
me, you were imprisoned in Dhaka Central Jail for coming up with our charter of independence— “The
Six Point Program”, the charter of independence for all Bengalis. Including you, nearly 30,000 leaders and 1953 Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was elected General Secretary of the Awami Muslim League at its council
workers of the Awami League were in prison at that me. I came to know that the poem had a racted mee ng and con nued to gain prominence as a Bengali leader.
your a en on at this me. Did you really get to read my poem?

*
Yes, I did. I had read it quite a few mes. It was a very provoca ve poem indeed. But it delighted me. I
could understand that the dream-seed I had sown in East Bengal's people had flowered in a far-sighted
young poet's consciousness. I especially liked the rhythmic quali es of your poem.

*
Thank you very much Bangabandhu! Having wri en the first poem of its kind with you in mind, I
was delighted as well as proud of myself. What I would like to ask you now is how you could sense that
the “Six Point Demand” would inevitably become “The One Point Demand” for freedom at one point?
*

I knew this would be the case! My “Six Point Demand” was such that the autocra c
Pakistani rulers would neither be able to swallow nor vomit it out. I had given a wily fox, milk to lap up
from a pitcher. If it had taken the bait, a cons tu on based on the “6 Point Demand” would not only have
made East Pakistan but also the four provinces of Pakistan autonomous, near-independent states. It was
out of fear of such an op on that the Pakistanis did not take a bait they would be unable to swallow. 1954 The first elec ons in East Bengal were held on March 10. The United Front won 223 seats out of 237
I knew that a er we had won the elec on, they would not be transferring power over t Muslim reserved seats. The Awami League alone obtained 143 seats. Sheikh Mujib won the elec on
to us. They would speak only in the language of bullets. They would have to! They would a ack the
from the Gopalganj cons tuency and took oath on May 15 as Minister for Co-opera ve and
unarmed people of our country with the arms they had. They would construct a tomb for the “Six Point Agricultural Development in the new provincial government. The central government arbitrarily
Demand”, while we would build on the grave of Pakistan the founda on of an independent world—on dismissed the United Front cabinet on May 30, and as Mujib landed back in Dhaka from Karachi the
which we would be able to raise the green-colored, red sun-centered flag of independent Bangladesh. same day, he was immediately arrested. He was released on December 23.

* 1955 Under the leadership of the Party General Secretary Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Awami Muslim
League was renamed as the Awami League by dropping the word 'Muslim' to open the doors of the
Thank you very much dear Bangabandhu! I had that kind of expecta on from your “6 Point party to all, regardless of religion. This decision was made at the council session of the party during
Demand”. That demand had at its core the seminal element of East Bengal's independence. It was October 21-23, 1955. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was once again elected as the General Secretary of
impera ve to achieve an absolute majority in the na onal elec ons that took place in 1970 if we were to the party in the Council.
move along the path that would make the dream you had nurtured for so long come true.

Did you realize that you would win 167 seats in the 1970 na onal elec on? 1956 In September Sheikh Mujibur Rahman joined the provincial Awami League government headed by
Khan Ataur Rahman as a minister. Sheikh Mujib voluntarily resigned on May 30, 1957 from the
Cabinet in order to con nue as the General Secretary of the party to build the organiza on on a firm
foo ng as a pla orm of the Bengalis.