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Bangladesh Perspectives
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Dhaka
Joined January 2024
449 Following
5.3K Followers
1.6K Posts
Where is the proof? Didn't you have enough time to prove those allegations? Did your government let her appoint a lawyer of her choosing? How many of the cases have already been proven to be false claims? Yunus has a running case of evading taxes worth Tk 666 crore. Why is he not a criminal? @FBI investigated and testified against Tarique Rahman in money laundering and terrorism cases. Why is he not a criminal?
On 5th August in 2024, she did not board a personal helicopter. She did not use any personal airstrip. She did not fly the helicopter she was on. It was the army that sent her to India. She did not flee. She was put in exile. The misinformation helped build the anti-Awami narrative of the subsequent interim regime, the facilitators, and the organizers of the July movement. A media outlet with your stature should check the facts rather than echoing a state-sponsored narrative.
📷 BNP Means Minority Persecution and the Politics of Death! The Mysterious Death of a Hindu Woman in Manda Is a Horrifying Manifestation of This Brutal Pattern!
The BNP’s history and actions, from the past to the present, have repeatedly drawn accusations of persecution, intimidation and exploiting deaths for political purposes, particularly against the country’s minority communities. The recovery of an unidentified middle-aged Hindu woman’s body from the premises of a clinic in Manda Upazila is not only tragic but also paints a disturbing picture of the prevailing lawlessness and instability in the country.
Under the shadow of this power-hungry political circle, ordinary citizens are increasingly facing serious threats to their safety. In particular, the psychological intimidation, persecution and growing reports of mysterious deaths involving minority communities cannot simply be dismissed as isolated incidents. The climate of terror that has taken hold across the country since August 5 has, according to these allegations, been aimed at keeping ordinary people in a constant state of fear.
The people of Bangladesh must not allow minority persecution and the politics of death to become a means of concealing wrongdoing. The truth behind this mysterious death must be uncovered, and those responsible must be identified and held accountable. The country's working-class and minority communities will not tolerate such inhumane treatment and authoritarian practices indefinitely.
#Bangladesh #BangladeshCrisis #HindusUnderAttack
Will International Fashion Brands Stay Silent While Workers Are Crushed?
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The hands that stitch your shirts, trousers, and dresses belong to human beings, not machines. They have families to feed, rent to pay, and lives to sustain.
Yet police have met Bangladeshi garment workers demanding a Tk 30,000 minimum monthly wage with force in Dhaka, Narayanganj, and Gazipur. Tear gas and sound grenades have been deployed against demonstrators protesting for the third consecutive day.
The BNP government must answer why it is allowing legitimate economic grievances to escalate into confrontations with law enforcement.
International buyers cannot preach corporate responsibility while ignoring the realities faced by the workers producing their merchandise. Silence sends a dangerous message: commercial interests matter more than human dignity.
If you can demand deadlines, quality, and lower prices from Bangladeshi factories, you must also demand fair wages and protection for the people working inside them.
#Bangladesh #WageProtest #PoliceBrutality #RMGWorkersProtest #BNPViolence #WhoMakesYourClothes
UN and global rights bodies fuelling Bangladesh’s ruthless crackdown on garments workers
In Bangladesh demanding fare wage for garment workers turning out fatal, as western democracies and UN kept mum over unfolding rights abuses against garment workers.
This lifeless and bruised body of young garment worker symbolises the bloody and ruthless crackdown unleashed by state machinery to suppress the protest for fair wages.
This killing has not been reported on local media outlets while use of lethal weapons by cops and paramilitary forces has been widespread as Tarique Rahman’s top aide publicly instigated use of force and killing by law enforcement endorsing the extrajudicial killing spree.
Victim Sumon
An Lima Garments
#Bangladesh #RMG #BangladeshCrisis #WhoMakesYourShirts
The people behind your clothes deserve more than poverty wages and police brutality. At current minimum-wage benchmarks, a garment worker in Bangladesh must toil for 16 hours and 33 minutes to earn what workers in the UK earn in just 28 minutes. Their demand? Tk 30,000 a month—roughly US$8 a day—for a life of dignity. Yet workers demanding fair pay are being met with tear gas and water cannons. Asking for a living wage is not a crime. It is a basic labour right.
#WhoMakesYourClothes #WageProtest #RMGWorkersProtest #Bangladesh
The Hands That Clothe The World Are Denied Fair Wages
Bangladesh's garment workers help clothe the world. Their labour generates billions, sustains the export economy, and keeps the country's factories running. Yet the very workers behind this industry are still fighting for the fair wages and dignity they deserve.
What is the BNP government doing?
Instead of ensuring workers receive fair compensation and protection, the government is failing to address their legitimate demands.
A government that cannot protect the rights of the people who sustain its economy has no excuse for calling itself capable of governing.
The BNP may have inherited an export industry, but it is failing the people who keep it alive.
#GarmentWorkers #FairWages #BNPGovernment #WorkersRights
Your Shirt Was Made By Her.
Where Is Her Fair Wage?
The BNP government came to power promising change. Nine months later, 4 million garment workers are still trapped on 12,500 taka a month while inflation eats them alive.
When they demand a living wage of 30,000, the answer is tear gas, water cannons, and batons.
This is not governance. This is open betrayal of the very workers who keep Bangladesh’s export economy alive.
BNP is failing the poshak sromik just like every government before it. Only the party name changed. The exploitation continues.
#MadeInBangladesh #FairWages #GarmentWorkers
A Planned Campaign of Disinformation on Facebook, Followed by Attacks on Minorities in Pirganj: by Jamaat-Shibir and BNP-Linked Groups
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History bears witness, and present-day realities are cited as evidence of what the author describes as a recurring pattern: “BNP-Jamaat rule or influence means systematic persecution, looting, and a reign of terror against the country’s minority communities.”
A similar incident has reportedly unfolded in Chak Karim (Telipara) village, under Sadar Union of Pirganj Upazila in Rangpur district. Extremist cadres allegedly affiliated with Jamaat-Shibir launched a violent attack on the Hindu neighbourhood of Chak Karim after raising what the statement describes as fabricated and deliberately orchestrated allegations of religious defamation against an ordinary young villager, Sourav Chandra Mohanta, on Facebook.
According to the statement, electricity to the area was deliberately cut off in advance, after which an armed group of approximately 50 to 60 people attacked three Hindu households, vandalising their homes and carrying out extensive looting.
The statement argues that this was neither an ordinary nor an isolated incident. It characterises the episode as part of what it calls a longstanding and far-reaching conspiracy by the BNP-Jamaat alliance, alleging that its political agenda is to exploit religion to undermine Bangladesh’s secular ethos and force members of minority communities to leave the country.
It further alleges that Jamaat-Shibir and their allies deliberately incite mob violence, engaging in the destruction of innocent people’s lives and property.
#SaveBangladesh #JamaatShibirViolence #BNPJamaat
Why do the BNP and Jamaat appear so reluctant to challenge Pakistan’s distortion of the history of 1971?
Pakistan’s military surrendered on 16 December 1971, but the truth about its atrocities and military failures remains contested. Bangladesh’s Liberation War was not an Indian conspiracy—it was a struggle for freedom won through the courage, sacrifice and blood of millions of Bangladeshis.
Our history is not Pakistan’s propaganda. Our freedom is not negotiable. No political alliance or diplomatic convenience can justify forgetting the sacrifices of 1971.
Bangladesh belongs to the spirit of its Liberation War- not to the shadow of those who deny it.
#Bangladesh #Pakistan #LiberationWar1971
From Promising Freedom of Expression to Arresting One Critic Every Week: Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s Government Faces Growing Questions Over Its Commitment to Free Speech.
Despite Prime Minister #TariqueRahman’s pre-election pledges to uphold citizens’ freedom of expression, particularly their right to criticise the government, his administration’s record since assuming office tells a very different story.
Over the past eight months, at least 30 people have been arrested in #Bangladesh for criticising the #BNP government, the Prime Minister, his family members, ministers, or ruling party MPs. That amounts to approximately one arrest every week for speech critical of the government or the ruling party.
The latest incident occurred on 25 October 2026, when Sathi Akhter, a small business owner in Bhaluka, Mymensingh, was arrested after expressing frustration over the deteriorating law-and-order situation and regret for voting for the BNP during a Facebook Live broadcast.
According to a report by The Dacca, at least 50 people have been sued or arrested in connection with criticism of the BNP or its government since the party assumed power in February 2026.
A closer examination of these cases reveals several disturbing patterns:
1. Ruling party activists frequently initiate complaints and facilitate illegal arrests: Cases are often lodged by leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated organisations, including Jubo Dal, Swechchhasebak Dal, and Chhatra Dal.
Of the 50 people arrested or sued since February over speech critical of the BNP or its government, at least 18 were the subject of complaints filed by BNP leaders or members of its affiliated organisations.
In at least ten incidents, ruling party activists themselves apprehended the individuals concerned before handing them over to the police.
2. Unrelated criminal charges being used to detain government critics: Where the allegedly objectionable speech is difficult to prosecute as a criminal offence, the authorities appear to have resorted to alternative charges.
In at least seven cases, individuals who criticised the Prime Minister on social media were reportedly picked up over their posts, only to be subsequently shown as arrested in older, unrelated cases involving allegations under the Anti-Terrorism Act or vandalism.
3. The actual scale of arrests linked to political expression is considerably broader: Importantly, these figures do not include the scores of individuals detained under the Anti-#Terrorism Act for expressing support for the #AwamiLeague or chanting political slogans such as Joy Bangla.
Nor do they include arrests under the Cyber Security Act, 2026. According to the Human Rights Support Society (HRSS), 61 people were arrested under the Cyber Security Act between March and August 2026, compared with just 17 during the corresponding period of the previous year. This represents an increase of approximately 259%.
Although these arrests cannot all be categorised as cases involving criticism of the government, the sharp increase raises additional concerns about the use of criminal law to regulate expression.
From Pre-Election Promises to Post-Election Repression
Before the election, Tarique Rahman went so far as to share a cartoon depicting himself, apparently to demonstrate his willingness to tolerate criticism and encourage citizens to express their opinions freely.
Eight months into his premiership, however, the emerging record presents a striking contradiction.
Report: https://t.co/tm0iARJ3DL
…
@hrw @amnestysasia @ESandersFCDO @StateDRL @article19org @Irenekhan @CIVICUSalliance
Professional Criminals Are Running Free - And BNP Has No Answer
A man with 34 cases of robbery, dacoity and murder is found attempting another highway robbery.
This is not a policing success story. It is an admission of systemic failure. When such dangerous criminals remain active on major highways, it means the justice system and law enforcement have both collapsed under the current government.
BNP promised order. What it has delivered is open hunting grounds for career criminals.
Read more: https://t.co/JSna6qrIg5
#SaveBangladesh #BNPMisrule
The Death of Tahsif Sauri: Can Mahmudur Rahman Escape Responsibility for the ‘RAW Agent’ Label?
A young officer who was branded an agent of India’s intelligence agency by a newspaper without evidence, and who lost his job, dignity, and freedom of movement because of that label, has been found dead in the Turag River. The body of former Bangladesh Air Force Flight Lieutenant K. M. Tahsif Sauri was recovered by the Tongi outpost of the River Police from the Rajabari Ghat area at around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. He had been missing since the night of October 27.
The inquest report found no visible signs of injury on his body, although blood was coming from his nose. His body was sent to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital for an autopsy.
This death has brought renewed attention to a news report, an editor, and a disturbing culture in which people can be branded traitors without due process.
The August 5 Video and the ‘RAW Agent’ Label
Tahsif’s name came under public scrutiny after a video showing then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina leaving the country from Kurmitola Airport on August 5, 2024, began circulating. The incident took a new turn on August 4, 2025, when the daily Amar Desh published a report titled “RAW Network Exposed Inside the Air Force.” The report claimed that Flight Lieutenant Rifat Ashrafi had recorded the video on his mobile phone and that Tahsif had posted it on his own Facebook account. The report directly linked the incident to an alleged RAW network.
However, reports in other media outlets indicate that it is not even clear whether Tahsif personally recorded the video. Nevertheless, after August 5, both officers were retired from the Air Force.
Tahsif’s classmate and colleague, KSM Intisar Inzimam, claims that Tahsif was subjected to a smear campaign following the leak of the video. According to him, no police case had been filed against Tahsif, as far as he knew.
No case, no trial, no verdict—only a newspaper report, and on that basis alone, an officer was turned into a foreign agent.
What Tahsif Said Three Months Before His Death
About three months before his death, Tahsif raised questions during a YouTube podcast: “What propaganda is the report published by Amar Desh serving?”
He said, “Even if I recorded the video and circulated it, what is the proof they are having?”
When asked why he had lost his job, he replied, “I won’t say everything; I have certain limitations of my own. I think they did this because of these allegations—look at the Amar Desh report. They wrote that I had made the video go viral.”
He added, “It could also be that this is why I am no longer in the Air Force.”
He explained, “I had to face a lot of social embarrassment because of a completely false report,” and “My passport was withheld for two years.”
Speaking about the process of leaving the Air Force, he said:
“I was told to write and sign an application for voluntary retirement, and that if I did so, they would no longer harass me. But even after submitting it, I said that I should be arrested and court-martialed. None of that happened. They would take me to different places on different days without telling me where I was going… What happened to me was unfair.”
He did not, however, express hostility toward the Air Force itself. He said:
“I have no resentment toward the force. My resentment is toward the people who intentionally served someone’s interests and harassed someone.”
He described the entire experience this way:
“Changing a truth, changing a narrative, putting someone through social embarrassment… so that they cannot protest against injustice or establish the truth… these are injustices.”
🔗 https://t.co/kxUQi67HqF
What Tahsif’s Statements Reveal
First, publishing a video and engaging in espionage are not the same thing. Tahsif denied the allegations that he had recorded and circulated the video and challenged his accusers: even if he had done so, where was the proof? The burden of producing evidence rests with the accuser.
Even if we assume, for the sake of argument, that he recorded or published the video, that might at most constitute a breach of discipline. It does not establish that someone is a foreign agent. The Amar Desh report never demonstrated, with evidence, the connection between these two allegations. Nevertheless, it treated that connection as established fact.
Second, Tahsif paid the price for an unsubstantiated report with his career, freedom of movement, and social standing. When discussing his dismissal, he himself pointed to the Amar Desh report.
His statement, “I have certain limitations of my own,” suggests that there may have been more he knew but could not disclose—and now may never be able to disclose. The investigation must establish who withheld his passport for two years and under what authority.
Third, if Tahsif’s account is accurate, his retirement was not truly voluntary; it was obtained under the condition that the harassment would stop. Media reports have referred to his compulsory retirement, while Tahsif said he was made to sign an application for voluntary retirement. This discrepancy raises serious questions about the transparency of the process.
Most significantly, Tahsif himself had demanded arrest and a court-martial. A person seeking to evade justice would ordinarily try to avoid a formal proceeding; Tahsif said he wanted one. No such proceeding took place. Instead, according to his account, he was taken to undisclosed locations on different days, raising serious concerns about potential violations of his human rights.
In the same podcast, while speaking about his duty to his country, Tahsif said:
“There is no greater glory than to die for a noble cause, and there is no nobler cause to die for than one's country.”
The officer who regarded giving his life for his country as the highest honor was himself branded a foreign agent. This contradiction raises serious questions about a process in which labels of patriotism and treason are handed out without evidence.
Mahmudur Rahman in the Dock
The starting point of this entire controversy was a newspaper report, and as its editor, Mahmudur Rahman bears editorial responsibility for what was published.
According to Tahsif’s account, the loss of his job, the withholding of his passport, his alleged transportation to undisclosed locations, and his social humiliation all began with that report. Mahmudur Rahman cannot simply evade questions about the responsibility attached to a report that, according to Tahsif, pushed a young officer’s life progressively toward the brink.
Tahsif did not name anyone directly. However, his description of a process involving the intentional advancement of someone’s interests, the manipulation of narratives, and the use of social humiliation to silence dissent closely parallels the Amar Desh report and the events that followed it.
Alleged Links to Turkish Intelligence and Strategic Propaganda
Mahmudur Rahman returned to Bangladesh in September 2024 after spending nearly six years in Turkey. According to his critics, his journalism and activities had been controversial in the past as well.
There have been allegations that, while living in Turkey, he became deeply involved with influential intelligence and political networks there and worked on behalf of Turkish intelligence. Further allegations suggest that, as part of international geopolitical and intelligence maneuvering, he may have sought to advance his own agenda or serve the interests of another foreign state by systematically targeting important and sensitive individuals within Bangladesh, branding them as RAW agents to gain strategic advantage.
It is necessary to investigate seriously whether the same alleged tactic was used against Tahsif.
These are extremely serious allegations. If true, they would pose a grave threat to national security. If false, Mahmudur Rahman should publicly address them. As of the writing of this article, no statement from him or Amar Desh has been identified.
Suspicions of Murder and Attempts to Conceal Evidence
The moment Sheikh Hasina left Bangladesh on August 5 was a turning point in the country’s history. There are rumors that Tahsif possessed sensitive and confidential information and evidence relating to Kurmitola Airport and its surrounding areas during that period.
If such material were made public or brought to light through an impartial investigation, it could potentially expose the nature of certain groups’ activities or particular intelligence-related propaganda operations.
This raises serious questions: Was Tahsif deliberately discredited by being branded a RAW agent to conceal the truth, silence him, or destroy his credibility? Was there any attempt to influence or orchestrate the circumstances surrounding his mysterious death?
These questions are now being raised with increasing urgency.
Mahmudur Rahman must answer the following questions:
- On the basis of what investigation and evidence was Tahsif described as part of a “RAW network,” and why has that evidence still not been made public?
- What journalistic principle permits someone to publicly label an officer a foreign agent without a criminal case or a judicial finding?
- Did Tahsif receive any threats before his death, and who currently possesses the information and evidence he may have had concerning August 5?
- While living in Turkey, with whose support and in the interests of which foreign agency did he allegedly embark on a campaign to spread fabricated and baseless RAW-related propaganda against Bangladeshi citizens and officials?
- Was there any secret understanding or collusion connected to his report, published while he was editor of Amar Desh, concerning the political upheaval of August 5 or efforts to protect the interests of particular groups?
The Time to Investigate Is Now
The autopsy report may help determine whether Tahsif’s death was accidental, a suicide, or a homicide. But accountability for the circumstances that, according to his account, pushed him into such a precarious position cannot wait for the autopsy results.
An independent and transparent investigation is now imperative. It must examine his mobile phone, his last communications, and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.
The investigation must not exclude the Amar Desh report, its sources, or its editor.
It is time to conduct a thorough investigation into whether Mahmudur Rahman or anyone else had any involvement in this death. The state has a responsibility to ensure that the justice Tahsif said he had sought but never received during his lifetime is, at the very least, pursued through the establishment of the truth after his death.
#Bangladesh
Even a Bangladesh Bank Official Is Not Safe Under BNP Rule
A Bangladesh Bank Additional Director withdraws 5 lakh taka.
On his way home in broad daylight, a private car blocks his auto-rickshaw on the Dhaka-Tangail highway. The money is snatched. The robbers escape.
If a senior bank official can be robbed so openly near the capital, what safety exists for ordinary citizens?
This is not a random crime. This is the direct result of a government that has lost control of the streets.
Read more: https://t.co/RADK2Z2BrD
#SaveBangladesh #RuleOfLaw #BangladeshCrisis
In BNP’s Bangladesh, Freedom Has a Price Tag
Three days of torture in the Teknaf hills.
Four lakh taka paid for release.
A government that cannot stop armed gangs from kidnapping and torturing citizens in broad daylight has no right to claim it is governing. Law and order has not merely deteriorated — it has been abandoned.
When families are forced to negotiate with criminals instead of relying on the police, the state has surrendered.
Read more: https://t.co/NSW9Cfj3Xy
#SaveBangladesh #BNPMisrule
Three Minority Homes Vandalized in Rangpur Over False Blasphemy Allegations
RANGPUR, BANGLADESH — Three homes belonging to members of the minority community in Rangpur were vandalized after allegations of religious desecration spread through the area, triggering anger and unrest among local residents.
According to local reports, rumors accusing members of the community of offending religious sentiments prompted a mob to gather and head toward the families’ homes. The situation quickly escalated into an attack that left the houses badly damaged.
Images from the scene show the extent of the destruction. Tin-sheet walls and roofs were torn apart, household belongings were scattered across the floors, and furniture, televisions, kitchen utensils, and other personal items were smashed.
The affected families say they have suffered significant losses and are now living in fear following the incident. The allegations that reportedly triggered the violence have been described as baseless, raising serious concerns about how rumors can be used to target vulnerable communities.
The attack has prompted calls for a thorough investigation and accountability for everyone involved, including those who spread the allegations and those who took part in the violence. Community members are also urging authorities to ensure the safety of the affected families and prevent further attacks against religious minorities.
No one should have to fear for their home or personal safety because of their religious identity. Authorities must act swiftly to establish the facts, bring those responsible to justice, and ensure that every citizen is protected under the law.
#Bangladesh #SaveBangladeshiHindus
Tarique Rahman’s Mecca Agreement: At What Cost to Bangladesh?
The reported agreement with Saudi Arabia remains shrouded in secrecy, raising serious questions about Bangladesh’s national interests and the safety of its young people. Why should Bangladeshi lives be put at risk in a conflict that is not ours? 🇧🇩
Bangladesh deserves transparency, accountability, and answers - not silence.
#Bangladesh #MeccaPact #ForeignPolicy
Two Bangladeshi citizens, Nazrul Islam Abdul Basir and Sweety Akhtar, were executed in Saudi Arabia on October 14. Bangladesh reportedly learned of their executions only afterward, despite their names appearing on a prisoner list shared with its consulate.
Instead of answers and accountability, BNP’s Foreign Affairs State Minister Shama Obaed reportedly called the executions a “major lesson for us.”
A lesson? Two lives are gone. Where was the government’s intervention to save them?
Now BNP seeks closer alignment through the Mecca Defence Pact. What does that mean for millions of Bangladeshi migrant workers if the government cannot ensure timely consular attention and legal assistance for citizens facing execution?
No more silence. No more lessons after lives are lost. BNP must explain what went wrong and what concrete safeguards it will establish to prevent similar tragedies.
#Bangladesh #HumanRights #MigrantWorkers #BangladeshCrisis
A PUJA MANDAP IS NOT A POLITICAL COURTROOM.
An Awami League leader was handed over to police from a Durga Puja mandap following an accusation alleged to be false.
Now the question is, who gave these people the authority to decide who deserves to celebrate and who deserves to be treated as a suspect?
A religious festival is not a political checkpoint. A citizen's political identity must never become an excuse for public humiliation or intimidation.
Is this the democracy Bangladesh was promised, or the rule of political vendettas dressed up as justice?
People have the right to celebrate Durga Puja in peace. No political party owns the mandaps. No mob gets to decide who belongs.
#DurgaPuja #Democracy #RuleOfLaw #Bangladesh
Why Do the BNP and Jamaat Regard Pakistan as Their Qibla?
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Why has no one ever answered the question of why certain political parties in Bangladesh feel such deep affection for a country whose army, even after signing the Instrument of Surrender on 16 December 1971, refused to use the word “surrender” in its official statement? The ISPR said that day that hostilities had ceased following an arrangement between local commanders. That was it. The document of defeat was signed at Dhaka’s Racecourse Ground, while the people of Pakistan were told that an “arrangement” had been made.
This legacy of lies has never ended. Husain Haqqani, who later became Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington, wrote that he was fifteen at the time. His father returned home after hearing the news of the surrender on the BBC, but young Haqqani shouted that it was all foreign propaganda against Pakistan. Just four days earlier, Radio Pakistan had announced that there was no question of surrender. An entire nation was kept in the dark as it was led to defeat.
An inquiry commission was subsequently established: the Hamoodur Rahman Commission. It heard testimony from more than two hundred witnesses. It called for the public trial of six generals, including Yahya Khan. It demanded courts-martial for six officers, including Niazi. It also recommended the establishment of a separate tribunal to investigate atrocities committed in East Pakistan. And what was the outcome? Nothing. The accused retired with full pensions and even received military salutes after their deaths. Eleven of the report’s twelve copies were destroyed. The remaining copy was buried for nearly three decades.
So how did the report finally reach the people of Pakistan? Not through their own government. In August 2000, India’s India Today published excerpts from it. Four months later, embarrassed by the disclosure, the Pakistani government released the report. It took twenty-nine years for a country to read its own investigation into its defeat—and even then, had a newspaper in an enemy country not exposed it, the wait might have been even longer.
It is also worth examining who helped cover up this entire affair. In 1971, two men served as the army’s public faces: Brigadier A. R. Siddiqi in Rawalpindi and Major Siddiq Salik in Dhaka. The morning after the operation on the night of 25 March, Siddiqi was sitting in Dhaka Cantonment, eating oranges handed to him by Tikka Khan. Tikka told him they had just arrived fresh from West Pakistan. This scene appears in Siddiqi’s own diary. Neither man was ever held accountable. On the contrary, both later wrote books about 1971, and one of them even received an award from Zia-ul-Haq in 1985 before becoming head of public relations for the three armed services.
In Pakistani school textbooks, the chapter on 1971 is titled “The Fall of East Pakistan.” The causes listed include an Indian conspiracy and espionage by Hindus. The number of civilians who died does not appear in any textbook. Not even a single figure is given.
In 2019, ISPR chief Asif Ghafoor declared at a press conference that Pakistan would not have been divided in 1971 if today’s media had existed back then. Journalists sitting before him brought up the name of Anthony Mascarenhas. The army itself had taken that journalist on a tour of East Pakistan. Realising that what he had witnessed could never be published in Pakistan, he fled to London and wrote an article titled “Genocide,” published in The Sunday Times on 13 June. The media existed in 1971, too. It simply was not allowed to do its job.
In 2022, outgoing army chief Bajwa announced that he would correct the historical record, claiming that the fall of East Pakistan was not a military failure but a political one. According to his figures, 34,000 Pakistani troops faced 250,000 Indian soldiers and 200,000 members of the Mukti Bahini. In other words, he was unwilling even to count the 92,000 who surrendered as soldiers, yet had no qualms about inflating the numbers of those who defeated them. Within a week, Pakistan’s own foreign minister declared that the fall of Dhaka had been a military failure. Two different versions of history from the same state in the same week.
Last year, following a four-day conflict with India, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stood before soldiers in Sialkot and declared, “You have avenged the war of 1971.” He repeated the same statement in Muzaffarabad and Quetta. Taking a jab at Modi, he also asked who had trained the Mukti Bahini in 1971. According to this logic, 1971 was a defeat at the hands of India, and striking Indian bases is enough to avenge that defeat. The people of East Pakistan do not exist in this calculation. Neither do our mothers, sisters, brothers, or our people. Our country itself has disappeared from the narrative. All that remains is “India’s conspiracy.”
On 5 December, the current ISPR chief, Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, sat at a press conference and called Sheikh Mujibur Rahman a “traitor.” Even in 2025, the spokesperson of the Pakistani army was still calling a man whose call gave birth to an independent country a traitor. The occasion was an attack on imprisoned Imran Khan. Here, the man who gave birth to Bangladesh was reduced to a convenient pretext for smearing a jailed politician.
Now, let us look at our own house. What explains this fawning attitude in Bangladesh’s power politics towards an army that does not tell the truth even to its own people, whose inquiry report remained hidden for twenty-nine years, and whose chief still calls the Father of our Nation a traitor? Whenever the names of Pakistan and the BNP, currently in power, and Jamaat-e-Islami, which shares power in Parliament, appear in the same conversation, the tone of both parties softens. Their eyes seem to light up whenever they look towards Islamabad and Rawalpindi. Every time an insult comes from across the border, they remain silent—or else explain it away as “diplomacy.”
When we see such desperate yearning for Pakistan from these two parties, we cannot help but ask one question about the very country that sat down to breakfast, eating oranges, on the morning after 25 March 1971. Is this relationship purely diplomatic, or is it a bond in which the greater the humiliation, the deeper the allegiance? The ISPR does not even allow the truth to reach the people of its own country. Why, then, do these two parties in Bangladesh look so eagerly towards that very narrative? They may refuse to say it openly, but the people understand perfectly well: this is the desperate longing of an illegitimate child without a recognised father for an illegitimate father.
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