Book debunking ‘14 major myths’ about fall of Dhaka launched

Dr Junaid Ahmed describes his book as Pakistan’s narrative on
East Pakistan’s debacle in response to Bangladeshi and Indian narratives

It is not in the nature of the Pakistan Army to carry out mass killings of its own people, which is evident from the operations in Karachi and Swat; so the accusations of the massacre of three million Bengalis and the rape of two hundred thousand women in East Pakistan by the army are totally baseless and a lie.

This observation was made by Dr Junaid Ahmed, a renowned academician and historian, in his speech at the launch ceremony of his book, titled “Creation of Bangladesh: Myths Exploded”, at a hotel on Friday.

The book launch came on December 16, the darkest day in the history of Pakistan when in 1971 the country broke up and East Pakistan became a separate country, Bangladesh.

The ceremony was addressed by senior military and diplomatic officials, including former interior minister and Sindh governor Lt- General (retd) Moinuddin Haider, former chief of naval staff admiral (retd) Shahid Karimullah, ex-diplomat and analyst Shahid Amin, academician Huma Baqai and advocate Shoa-un-Nabi, who discussed the factors that led to the creation of Bangladesh, and critically reviewed the facts presented by the author.

Dr Junaid Ahmed maintained that he decided to write on the myths that led to emergence of Bangladesh after finding out that there had been a complete silence in Pakistan over the accusations of Bangladeshis and Indians regarding the events that led to separation of East Pakistan. He described his book as Pakistan’s narrative on East Pakistan’s debacle in response to Bangladeshi and Indian narratives of the incident.

He said the separation of East Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh were more painful for him than the deaths of his mother and father. The government of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had not recovered from the hatred and was still hanging Bengalis who resisted the separation of East Pakistan.

The author said there were 14 major myths or accusations that were used by the Indians and Bengali nationalists for the creation of Bangladesh and the biggest of them was the alleged massacre of three million Bengalis by the Pakistani military, which was in fact a lie first spread by Soviet wire service Pravda, and later this figure was used by the Sheikh Mujibur Rehman when he landed in Dhaka.

“When Mujib landed in Dhaka after the creation of Bangladesh, he asked Tajuddin Ahmed how many were killed, and he [Ahmed] replied three lakh’. But Sheikh Mujib told David Frost in an interview that three million people were killed,” Dr Junaid Ahmed said, adding that no evidence of mass killings was found by a commission formed by the Bangladeshi authorities to look into the allegations of massacre by the Pakistan Army as not a single mass grave was found in East Pakistan.

He, however, conceded that policies of the West Pakistan establishment, economic deprivation, prevailing poverty and rule of West Pakistan’s elite towards Bengalis created a sense of deprivation among them, which was exploited by the Indians.

The author also rejected the claim that Operation Searchlight was launched by the Pakistan Army to crush Bengalis, saying it was the Awami League and its hooligans who were ordered by Sheikh Mujib to destroy power houses, bridges and communication system and to loot and plunder ration depots that compelled the army to launch the military operation and restore peace.

“The Pakistan Army never killed its own people, neither in East Pakistan, nor in Karachi or Swat although organisational structures of both Mukti Bahini and Muttahida Qaumi Movement are same and identical.”

Former chief of naval staff admiral (retd) Shahid Karimullah said the author had warned that the Indian pattern of working in Balochistan was similar to what it did in East Pakistan. He found the facts and details presented by the author to be fair and factual.

He agreed with the author that the binding force between the people of East and West Pakistan was Islam; otherwise, there were huge differences of language, culture and traditions between them. He said mistakes were committed by the both sides that led to bloodshed and the creation of Bangladesh.

Former ambassador Shahid Amin said Indian prime minister Indra Gandhi proved wrong when she commented on the creation of Bangladesh that the two-nation theory drowned in the Bay of Bengal because Bangladesh became a separate Islamic country instead of merging into India.

He, however, said political and economic autonomy, which was a demand of the Bengalis, could have stopped East Pakistan’s separation from West Pakistan, but the West Pakistan establishment paid no heed to that demand and, ultimately, the sense of deprivation led to the creation of a separate homeland for the people of East Pakistan.

Criticising the political leadership of West Pakistan, he said ZA Bhutto did not allow the holding of the National Assembly session and created hurdles in the transfer of power to the Awami League, which had won the 1970 polls.

In her address, Dr Huma Baqai observed that Pakistan’s ties with Bangladesh had not been normal since its creation and that Bangladeshis and Afghans were more critical of Pakistanis than Indians at international forums. She added that it was the Indian insecurity that compelled it to conspire against Pakistan.

She complimented Dr Junaid Ahmed for breaking the silence on the allegations of Bangladeshis and Indians regarding the Pakistan Army’s alleged atrocities in East Pakistan. She said research needed to done in Pakistan on the causes that led to the creation of Bangladesh.

She also called for the declassification of the annexure of the Hamood-ur-Rehman Commission Report, saying that  Dr Junaid Ahmed’s book was very quiet on the report that had explained the situation that led to the creation of Bangladesh.

Regarding the role of ZA Bhutto, she said he exploited the situation and any other politician would have done the same in similar circumstances.

A large number of academicians, experts, civil servants and students attended the book launch.