One renowned global political scientist of South Asia once mentioned in one of his international research papers that charismatic leaders are the gifts and mercy from almighty who are regarded as ‘the torch bearers of knowledge and revolution’. In the case of Bangladesh, people of this land is fortunate enough to have a legendary leader like Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who guided his people in process of freedom movement, and thus gave independence to a nation ‘dawning tranquility of mind and unshackled boundaries’.
This scholar further goes on reporting that as good leaders build good nations, it is fully true for Bangladesh as ‘Sheikh Mujibur Rahman sacrificed every breath and blood of his life and mapped a new nation in the world’.
For that reason, Bangabandhu and Bangladesh are two inseparable words which can never be distinguished from each other; had he not born, Bangladesh would have never been created. On this day of 17 March in 1920, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the great leader of the earth and the founder-father of Bangladesh was born who created a nation giving independence to his people having them a separate land to live with prestige and dignity.
In achieving the independence of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu altogether had fought for about 23 years raising several drastic movements to liberate this country from the brutal political and economic persecution of Pakistan. Unfortunately, Bangabandhu was allowed to live only for 55 years of his age; and almost similar to Nelson Mandela, Mujib had to remain in imprisonment several times for about fourteen years.
Although, Bangabandhu altogether was very desperate in his struggle for independence from the very beginning, yet he used to take all his political decisions very carefully and thoughtfully which gave him success in his political life. There is however, no reason to believe that Bangabandhu became a leader just in a fluke; rather, it took many years of his struggle for independence in various stages which made him a great leader in the country.
Being a great disciple of Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, Sheikh Mujib also incidentally fought for the independence of Pakistan during British colonization mostly centering on Bengal; and at that time, he was very much inspired by the political ideologies of Mahatma Gandhi, and Netaji Subhas Chandra Basu and others. But soon after the independence of 1947, Mujib however, had a clear realization that it would be difficult to stay amicable with the Pakistanis as it was expected before independence.
Since its inception, the union of Bangladesh with Pakistan was very much unhappy and volatile from the socio-economic, political and lingua-cultural perspectives where the people of Bangladesh and the country itself was fully treated as a colonial hinterland of Pakistan. After being freed from the British rule, Bangladesh in fact, had fallen into another kind of repressive rule of Pakistan where they exploited the people of Bangladesh in terms of their political rights and economic shares.
In fact, it is Bangabandhu’s intelligence, courage and timely actions in politics which allowed him to propel the country with enthusiasm and encouragement for independence. In one side, he mobilized the people at the grass root level to fight forward, on the other side, he created and built up the second line of most dedicated and sacrificing leadership throughout the country for facing the political crises during his absence, whenever he is in imprisonment.
Had he not taken such strategies of creating leaders and followers, his political movement for achieving Bangladesh would have died out in vain at the very beginning. Among such exemplary leaders, we find his close and trusted associates like, Syed Nazrul Islam in Mymensingh, Tajuddin Ahmed in Dhaka, Captain Mansur Ali in Pabna, A.H.M. Qamruzzaman in Rajshahi, Sheikh Abdul Aziz in Khulna, Phani Bhusan Majumder in Madaripur, Abdul Aziz and Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury in Chittagong are among many of such leaders.
Beyond them, there were plenty of trained leaders coming from different regions of the country like, Abdul Malek Ukil from Noakhali and M.R. Siddique from Chittagong, Abdus Samad Azad from Sylhet and a few dozens of such leaders who in later phases also similarly contributed enormously providing political activism to Bangabandhu and organized movements in different parts of the country.
With his political geniuses, Bangabandhu farsightedly found very honest and committed leaders throughout the country whom he trusted like family members. Side by side, being inspired by Bangabandhu’s charisma, a few young student leaders from Dhaka University like Tofael Ahmed, Abdur Razzak, Abdul Kuddus Makhon and a few more also had great contribution in mobilizing the younger students-force in the country during 1960s and 1970s creating a direct support-base for Mujib in the political modality.
Mujib strategically designed spreading over the movement for liberation of the people of eastern wing throughout the country and also simultaneously mobilized the people slowly and slowly for independence. That is the reason, when Bangabandhu declared his sensational six-point movement, he could visualize it well ahead that he and his close associates might soon be taken to police custody in jail.
Such prediction of him came true as Bangabandhu and all his close associates were also taken with him in captivity, yet his six-point movement was still rolling on the street relying on Mr. Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury and Amena Begum and few others. Similarly, when Bangabandhu was taken into imprisonment on 26th March, 1971, his close associates Syed Nazrul Islam, Tajuddin Ahmed and Captain Monsur Ali and a few others soon under the leadership of Sheikh Mujib had formed the Mujibnagar Provisional Government in exile in Meherpur on 10 April, 1971.
Sheikh Mujib was such a kind of venerable figure who did never compromise with the interest of his people and the nation and for that reason, many prominent leaders in the country like, Abul Hashem, Abul Monsur Ahmed, Ataur Rahman Khan and many such prominent leaders of the time could not survive in the politics as most of them became isolated from the general masses. But Mujib had always remained attached with the general masses very closely; instead of alienating them, Mujib rather excited them to be with him for rigorous movement.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman accomplished such an amazing feat and vision that many leaders of the world could not have even dream of. He was a legendary personality who taught his people to live with dignity and honour. With a proportionately tall-statured physique, Bangabandhu possessed a thunderous god-gifted voice, having an extraordinary oratory capacity with indomitable spirit, bravery and self-confidence which were beyond many people. It is no wonder that he was called the ‘poet of politics’.
His historic 7th March speech has now been recognized and included in the UNESCO World Documentary Heritage and while comparing it with that of Abraham Lincoln, Sir Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King and others; but remarkably, Bangabandhu’s one is the exceptional extempore speech, being unique in the world. Many world leaders in the past as well as in present time recognize Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as one of the greatest leaders of the world in the twentieth century. Such a benevolent and warm-hearted leader will never be born in some thousand years to come.
But after his brutal killing in 1975, the country lost a great leader of the world who can never be replaced by anyone in this country. Many treacherous betrayers of this country know it very well that we the Bangladeshis could not have the independence of this country had there not been Mujib.
But the reality is that after his sad demise, the reactionary forces and religious fundamentalists were restored in the power-network of Bangladesh shattering the image of a progressive nation. Now the country has reemerged stabilizing its structural situation economically and politically, and accordingly it is now moving on very fast with its developmental goals under the leadership of our Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina; but unfortunately, our great leader is not with us at this moment of commemoration. We are now celebrating Mujib’s first birth centenary throughout the country and feel that our great leader remains amidst of us and we always keep on praying for him.
Professor A.H.M. Zehadul Karim is a former Vice Chancellor of a public university in Bangladesh, now teaches at Jagannath University