Historic Mujibnagar Day: A milestone in our history

"Not at all. You are not a witness: you're a part of history, Tawfiq."

Tajuddin Ahmad spoke these words when Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury thanked the newly sworn-in prime minister of the first government of Bangladesh for giving him the opportunity to be a witness to history on April 17, 1971.

Tawfiq, then a sub-divisional officer of erstwhile Meherpur sub-division, indeed witnessed the momentous occasion, a red-letter day in the history of the country: the oath-taking ceremony of the Mujibnagar Government, which performed all of the wartime tasks and led the Bangladesh War of Liberation.

It was on this day, 50 years ago, when the provisional government-in-exile took oath at a mango grove in Baidyanathtala, a border area in the present Meherpur district. Baidyanathtala was later named Mujibnagar.

Tawfiq-e-Elahi, who is now an advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and was one of the organisers of the management of the oath-taking ceremony, recalled the inauguration ceremony in his book titled "Chariot of Life: Liberation War, Politics and Sojourn in Jail".

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was declared president of the newly born republic. The oath of office was administered to Syed Nazrul Islam as vice president. Tajuddin Ahmad was sworn in as the prime minister as also were other ministers.

The crowd burst into cheers and applause, raising full-throated slogans of "Joy Bangla…," he wrote.

Just seven days before the oath-taking ceremony, the Mujibnagar government was formed with the aim of smoothly conducting the Liberation War, and the official announcement declaring the independence of Bangladesh, known as the Proclamation of Independence, was also issued. The MNAs and MPAs present in India also formed a constituent assembly.

But forming a government in exile was no easy task as there were numerous challenges and oppositions to overcome.

Barrister M Amir-Ul Islam, then a young lawyer and politician who drafted the Proclamation of Independence, recalled the efforts to find an ideal place for the formal inauguration of the new government.

"The oath-taking ceremony was first planned to be held in Chuadanga. But the plan had to be changed because the Pakistanis had an air strike there," Barrister Amir-Ul Islam told The Daily Star yesterday on the eve of Mujibnagar Day.

"Then, we decided to hold the inauguration ceremony at a mangrove at Baidyanathtala in Meherpur on April 17. We took the BSF into confidence. We asked for air cover and they agreed to do so and set up anti-air craft guns there," he said.

At the place, the canopies of mango groves were like a natural camouflage. The place was easy to reach from the Indian side by a dirt road that connected the border post and any unlikely air raid would involve crossing Indian airspace -- a risky choice for the Pakistani Air Force.

Amir-Ul Islam, also the whip of the Awami League parliamentary party in the constituent assembly, said the oath-taking ceremony had to be done quickly and with utmost secrecy.

Therefore, no one except Tajuddin Ahmed and Golok Bihari Majumder, the then director general of BSF (Eastern Command), was informed about the plan, he said.

Because the new government's inauguration needed the attention of people across the globe through international press, Amir-Ul Islam and Abdul Mannan, co-whip of the constituent assembly, went to Kolkata Press Club on April 16 to mobilise the media.

"We thanked them for their support to circulate news [on Bangladesh] across the globe, and we told journalists that you will get a message from the Bangladesh government tomorrow [April 17, 1971]," Amir-Ul-Islam said.

At one point on the night of April 16, they suddenly found that there was no appropriate uniform for Col MAG Osmani, commander-in-chief of Mukti Bahini. They found a tailor and had a new uniform stitched for Osmani.

They organised and hired a number of taxis. Leaders, foreign journalists, and others were boarded in those taxis headed towards Baidyanathtala.

Amir-Ul Islam said he reached Baidyanathtala with the journalists. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury and Mahboobuddin Ahmed, then sub-divisional officer of police (SDPO) at Jhenaidah, were already present there.

People were not mobilised due to secrecy but still came in large numbers, he recalled.

Hundreds of people from nearby villages gathered at the venue, but they were not sure what would take place. Some even climbed up to the branches of mango trees for a better view.

Giving an almost similar description of the oath-taking ceremony in his book, Tawfiq wrote: "The VIPs mounted the dais and took their seats."

Thronged by scores of media people, following recitation from holy books, Professor Yusuf Ali, chief whip of Awami League parliamentary party in the constituent assembly, began reading out the Proclamation of Independence.

The Proclamation of Independence stated that the objective of the government was to ensure equality, human dignity and social justice for the people of Bangladesh.

"The crowd fell silent. He [Prof Yusuf Ali] was quickly done with it as I stood dazed, aware of being a witness to a momentous occasion," Tawfiq wrote in the book.

Acting President Syed Nazrul Islam, with MAG Osmani, newly appointed commander-in-chief of Bangladesh Defence Forces, standing beside him, took the salute at a smart presentation, which was followed by the inspection of the guard.

The national flag was hoisted and a small group sang the national anthem, "Amar Sonar Bangla Ami Tomay Bhalobashi…". A scene from the pages of history was being played out in real life in a remote village, Tawfiq wrote in the book.

Syed Nazrul and Tajuddin spoke at the programme and went through a narration of Bangladesh's democratic struggle spanning decades, which had now turned into the Liberation War in the face of the Pakistani regime waging armed aggression and genocide on the unarmed people of Bangladesh.

The inauguration reminded many that during 1757's Battle of Plassey, Bengal lost its independence at the battleground of the mango grove in Plassey. Now another mango grove, not far away from Plassey, became the site where the government of the sovereign state of Bangladesh was inaugurated.

During the first days of war, it was difficult to organise civil administration and the freedom fighters, secure arms for the latter and train them, mobilise international support for the Liberation War through intense diplomatic action.

"As the international media was present there at the oath-taking ceremony, it went all over the world, it had worldwide publicity," Amir-Ul Islam told this newspaper while talking of the significance of the ceremony.

He said after the government was formed it became easier to make government-to-government dealings.

"We could correspond with India as well as other friendly countries and they gave us due respect," he said.

The Mujibnagar Government led the Liberation War and mobilised global support. The nation was freed on December 16, 1971.