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Only a handful

Shahnoor Wahid
THE wanton massacre and the brutality at Pilkhana must not be dignified by calling it a mutiny. It was more like an armed robbery by a large number of dacoits who went into a frenzy of killing, burning, and looting. Rape has not been ruled out by some analysts. Definitely the perpetrators were not "soldiers" who take the oath of allegiance to sene the country, accepting the terms and conditions of the service.
A soldier serves without asking questions. A soldier goes forward before a hail of bullets at the command of the commanding officer and gives his life for the country. Read the history of 1971 and
learn about the sacrifices of the soldiers of this same paramilitary force (the then EPR) and you will feel respect welling up within your bosom. The killers at Pilkhana were no soldiers. They were not worthy of the uniform they wore. They were dacoits just like any other dacoit who enters the house of an unarmed citizen and chops him down to loot his possessions.
Such murderers are to be tracked down and brought before a tribunal. There can be no second opinion about this, because once they have looted, raped, and killed, they will do it again and again. The last thread of morality has snapped inside their black souls and now they have no respect for human life.
They have tasted blood and they will
want more. So, if the killers remain untraced there is every chance that they will join some smugglers or child traffickers or killer gangs, unleash a reign of terror in the countryside, and create a serious law and order situation. Therefore, one has to be quick in dispensing justice in such cases, and exemplary punishment is the expected justice.
While we shall hunt the killers down in the valleys and jungles, we at the same time must launch a vigorous investigation to unearth the truthfulness of strong allegations that those robbers and killers did not act in isolation. It is being widely and openly discussed that the killers were frontline implementers of a blueprint that was masterminded by a sinister force.
Now, the question is how big is this dark force we are talking about? Are there many people manning the force? It is a pity that the overwhelming majority of the people of Bangladesh could not round these few rogues up and throw them into the dungeon for good. On the contrary, we have let them live in this country, we have let thorn grow in strength, we have watched them do all sorts of anti -people activities, and yet we
cannot do anything to stop them.
From the way unarmed army officers were killed at Pilkhana last week, it has become glaringly evident that it was done to unnerve and discredit the government, the armed forces, and the BDR, and that it was done to destabilise the state.
Some sources are talking about secret meetings the previous night. Some are talking about vehicles that moved suspiciously in the BDR compound. Some believe armed elements from outside joined the killers in uniform. Therefore, it is easy to conjecture that there are many loose ends flying around. Our sincere suggestion is: pick up the threads and weave the painful story back.
Going back again to the theory of only a handful of the masterminds that are out to destroy Bangladesh and all its achievements, we would like to send the warning note, beware of them however small in number they may be at the moment. Do what you must do before it really gets too nasty.
All the progressive and liberal forces must unite together to destroy the dark
forces. Side by side, create a new set of laws that could try them for mass murder and treason. Go to the International Court of Justice, get international lawyers, motivate our own lawyers to do
their homework well ahead to be able to make the case. Do whatever is needed. It is now or never.
Shahnoor Wahid is a Senior Assistant Editor of The Daily Star.