DU hands over martyr Barkat's certificate after 58 years

Fifty-eight years after his death, Dhaka University (DU) authorities yesterday handed over the graduation certificate and mark sheets of language martyr Abul Barkat to his family member.
DU Vice-chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddique handed them over to Barkat's cousin M Taha at the VC's office.
Barkat obtained his BSS (honours) degree in political science from Dhaka University in 1951. He stood second-class fourth. He died while he was a student of master's degree.
Taha had requested for the certificate and mark sheets for a documentary film he is financing.
Answering journalists' questions, the DU VC said the university authorities could have given the certificate earlier but since the student was deceased no initiative was taken.
"Now the university feels proud that they could manage the original certificate with the signature of the then examination controller," he added.
The documentary being filmed is about Barkat's life, his educational life, involvement in the Language Movement and his martyrdom.
The VC said the documentary filmmaker Rokeya Prachi would have the documents for filmmaking and then passed them on to Bhasha Shaheed Barkat Smriti Jadughar to be constructed at Palashi, Dhaka.
Talking to The Daily Star Rokeya Prachi said Taha approached her with the documentary project in February.
The 52-minute documentary titled "Bayannor Michhiley" (in the procession of '52) will be released in June and distributed to all museums, said Prachi.
She also expressed her gratitude to DU for allowing her to have such an old document.
Martyr Barkat's cousin Taha said, "There have been very few activities to commemorate Barkat in Bangladesh. There is a memorial museum in West Bengal, India where Barkat lived in his childhood.
"The idea for the documentary emerged and we requested the certificate for the film and documentation," he added.
Born in 1927 in Babla of Murshidabad, West Bengal, Abul Barkat, nicknamed Abai, was shot dead in a Language Movement procession on Dhaka Medical College premises on February 21, 1952. He was laid to rest at Azimpur graveyard.
He was awarded with Ekushey Padak in 2008.