Callous disregard for freedom fighter's burial

What are we to make of the fact that a freedom fighter was buried in Pabna's Bera upazila last Saturday with full state honours, but instead of the national flag his body was draped using a chatai (bamboo mat)? The deceased freedom fighter was a leading organiser of freedom fighters in the area and his burial was attended by the local administration that included a police guard of honour. Why then couldn't a national flag be found to give the man a befitting farewell? This shows precisely how much neglect exists at local level when it comes to showing proper respect for a person who commanded much respect for his contribution to the war of independence.

We take pride in our struggle for independence but the utter disregard to follow what is considered standard procedure by the local administration in this case, cannot be overlooked. Although the assistant commissioner present at the funeral has said that it was a "mistake", this incident merely highlights the shallowness in thinking on the part of the administration. When the "mistake" was noticed, should it not have been rectified? We expect an investigation into the matter and those responsible for making arrangements from the administrative side be called up and made to answer for this oversight. Simply washing it away as administrative bungling will do little to assure us that it will not happen again in the future, or assuage the frayed sentiments.