Gonotantrik Jukta Front protest demolition of Bir Sreshtha Hamidur Rahman sculpture

A delegation of the Gonotantrik Jukta Front visited the site of the Bir Shreshtha Hamidur Rahman Square and its partially demolished sculpture in Jhenaidah town this afternoon.

The delegation included General Secretary of the Socialist Party of Bangladesh (Basad) Bazlur Rashid Firoz, Standing Committee Member of the Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) Dr Mustak Hossain, and Presidium Member of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) Ragib Ahsan Munna. They were accompanied by local leaders of the Gonotantrik Jukta Front.

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Speaking to journalists, Firoz said that defeated forces of 1971 continue to feel threatened by Liberation War memorials and seek to erase them. He said successive governments had failed to fulfil the egalitarian aspirations of 1971 and clandestine groups were now attempting to destroy Liberation War monuments. “We strongly condemn this,” he said.

Mentioning that the delegation was saddened by the demolition, Dr Mustak said he was surprised that the elected government, which was expected to reflect the will of the people, had, in his view, indirectly supported the removal of the sculpture by presenting various justifications for relocating it.

He praised locals and students for opposing the move and demanded accountability for irregularities in the project’s implementation.

Munna said attacks on Liberation War memorials amounted to attacks on the spirit of 1971. He said Liberation War was people’s struggle against exploitation and urged restoration of the Bir Shreshtha Hamidur Rahman Square at its original location with full honour.

Delegation members said they had presented demands to the deputy commissioner, who assured them the sculpture would be preserved with dignity.