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History in its objectivity

Pallab Bhattacharya sifts through a work on Bangladesh's founder
ONCE you finish reading Syed Badrul Ahsan's work, From Rebel to Founding Father: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, you get a deep insight into not only the evolution of Bangladesh's independence architect but also the entire fascinating political journey of the country from the Partition of the Indian subcontinent and East Pakistan phase. Seldom has the evolution of an individual so interwined with the history of a nation.
Syed Badrul Ahsan focuses on the political career of Mujib, one of the most charismatic leaders of South Asia, and his transformation from being a supporter of formation of Pakistan in 1940s to someone who came to realize that Bengalis in Pakistan must return to their secular traditions and have an independent country.
Opinions have remained divided about Mujib as the top administrator of an independent Bangladesh which emerged from the ravages of an 11-month genocide waged by Pakistani troops, faced acute food scarcity, high prices and lawlessness and a highly controversial shift from multi-party democracy to one-party authoritarian rule in just four years.
However, few would dispute Mu jib's status as the tallest leader of his country, a powerful orator whose speeches had an electrifying effect on the masses and above all a politician with a remarkable ability to read the pulse of the people.
Ahsan's book discusses in detail with fair objectivity Mujib's evolution as a political leader who fought the rulers of West Pakistan and suffered years of imprisonment before leading Bangladesh's independence struggle. And that is something truly remarkable in a country where the media and journalists, as many other walks of life, remain sharply polarized along political lines often showing little accommodation for others' views and liberal space.
One of the most engrossing chapters of the book is the one on Mujib and his Awami League party's "Six-Point Programme" in the 1960s in undivided that is seen by many as the starting point of the then East Pakistan's march towards independence. Was Bangladesh's independence by chance or choice? Did Mujib want autonomy or independence for Bengalis in East Pakistan? These questions have often been debated in academic and political circles.
The chapter as also other parts of the book leaves one with the conclusion that religion could not be the unifying factor between the two wings of Pakistan and the economic neglect of East Pakistan, denial of political aspirations to its people and imposition of Urdu on an overwhelming Bengali-speaking population, particularly a ban on the writings of Rabindranath Tagore in the 1960s, pointed to inevitability of Bangladesh's independence. The book gives a clear answer to those who believe that Banladesh's independence struggle was more by chance than by choice.
The Six Point Programme, unveiled by Mujib at a convention of Pakistani opposition parties in Lahore in February, 1966, was aimed at securing autonomy but it had at that time itself "struck many as a veiled and yet unmistakable attempt at weaning East Pakistan away from the state that had been cobbled together in 1947", says Ahsan.
"The Six Points were in effect a point of departure for the two wings of Pakistan (East and West), the first signs of which would be seen in a raging wave of Bengali nationalism poised to hit hard and without remorse the old concept of a Muslim state as defined by Mohammed
Ali Jinnah in the 1940s", says Ahsan.
According to the book, in fact, it was as early as 1957 when Mujib had begun wonder if Pakistan, as it was turning out to be, would be where the Bengalis wanted to be and this strain of thought in him had shocked even his political mentor Hosseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy who asked him not to entertain such ideas. The 1965 India-Pakistan war further convinced Mujib that East Pakistan was being administered by the West more like a colonial territory.
But publicly, according to Ahsan, Mujib sought to give the impression that his Six Point Prorgamme was aimed at dismembering Pakistan and drove home the point that it was meant for strengthening the federation through decentralization of political authority. But authorities in the West Pakistan saw in Mujib seeds of sedition in him and in the three months since the declaration of the Six Points, he was arrested eight times.
However, even in as late as early March 1971, says the book, Mujib, though "did indeed weigh the pros and cons of a Unilateral Declaration of Independence", was "not ready to be branded a secessionist by his enemies. He was drawn to the broader principle of arguing the case for his Bengalis within the parameters of Pakistan".
Even in as late as early March 1971, says the book, Mujib, though "did indeed weigh the pros and cons of a Unilateral Declaration of Independence", was "not ready to be branded a secessionist by his enemies. He was drawn to the broader principle of arguing the case for his Bengalis within the parameters of Pakistan".
According to Ahsan, Mujib had kept at bay hardliners within Awami League demanding independence at bay as "he had not yet lost faith in negotiation", partly out of a fear of a crackdown by Pakistan army.
Another fascinating chapter in Ahsan's book is the appraisal of Mujib as a politician and administrator in independent Bangladesh when the country faced a nearfamine situation, cracks appeared between Mujib and a few of his cabinet colleagues, especially with Tajuddin Ahmed, on policy matters, growing authoritarian tendencies leading to formation of extra-constitutional authority like Jatiya Rakkhi Bahini and finally abolition of multiparty democracy about which Mujib had been passionate.
AH in all, Ahsan's book is of as much importance to researchers as to laymen who are keen on studying Mujib and the history leading to emergence of Bangladesh.
The book retains all the hallmarks of Ahsan as a writer, racy style, sharp analysis with proper perspective and a high degree of respect for Mujib without being biased and losing no opportunity to point out where he had gone wrong.
PALLAB BHATTACHARYA IS A SENIOR INDIAN
JOURNALIST BASED IN NEW DELHI