Preserve war memorials, historic sites

The High Court yesterday in a judgment directed the government to identify and preserve all the important historic places related to the republic's Liberation War.
The court asked it to set up memorial monuments at the historic places at Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital maintaining international standard so that people from home and abroad can pay homage to martyred freedom fighters.
The court also observed that Bangabandhu was undermined by the 'Swadhinata Padak' (Independence Award) conferred on him posthumously by Awami League in 1996, as Bangabandhu is the Father of the Nation and he remains above any such award.
It said Bangabandhu is the greatest Bengali in the history of the nation and the greatest freedom fighter; he himself is the symbol of the country's independence.
The HC ordered the government to take steps to protect and maintain the historic places at Suhrawardy Udyan where Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivered his historic speech on March 7 in 1971 and where Pakistani army surrendered on December 16, 1971.
Suhrawardy Udyan also include places where Bangabandhu gave his speech on January 10, 1972, after his return to the country from exile, and where Indira Gandhi, then prime minister of India, greeted Bangabandhu on March 17, 1972.
The HC bench of Justice ABM Khairul Haque and Justice M Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed came up with the directives and observations upon a writ petition jointly filed by freedom fighters Maj Gen (Retd) KM Safiullah Bir Uttam and Prof Muntasir Mamun.
The court also asked the government to form a committee within the next three months to identify the important historic places and then remove the structures, if any, from those places at Suhrawardy Udyan.
The committee will include historians, freedom fighters, anthropologists, sector commanders, and the persons who were present at the time when Pakistani army surrendered to the Mukti Bahini, the court said.
The HC ordered to identify and preserve all the historic places and martyrs' killing grounds across the country and to set up monuments there in memory of them, if possible.
The court also urged the government to accord all the sector commanders with Swadhinata Padak, saying that they fought for the country's independence by staking their lives.
It observed the state is constitutionally bound to protect and maintain the historic important places related to the Liberation War but it is regretful that no governments have taken any step so far to preserve them.
The future generation will not excuse us if we fail to preserve them, it said.
Prof Muntasir Mamun told newsmen the police station, police control room and the Shishu Park constructed at Suhrawardi Udyan will have to be removed to implement the HC directives.
Advocate Manzill Musrhid appeared for the petitioners while Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, Additional Attorney General MK Rahman, Deputy Attorney General Mostafa Zaman Islam, senior lawyers advocate AFM Mesbahuddin, advocate Abdul Baset Majumder and barrister Rabia Bhuiyan made arguments supporting the writ petition.