Bangladesh rewrites books to claim ex-army chief, not Sheikh Mujib ‘declared’ independence

New textbooks for primary and secondary students in Bangladesh will now name former army chief and president Lt Gen (r) Ziaur Rahman, not founder Sheikh Mujib Ur Rahman, as the person who declared independence in 1971.

According to reports, the interim government in Bangladesh rung in the new year with the distribution of new textbooks among students, as per which Zia and not Mujib declared independence for the people of Bangladesh.

In 2010, Mujib’s daughter and then-prime minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina, after coming to power for the second time, had ordered to mention her father as the person who declared independence via a wireless message just before he was arrested by Pakistani forces on March 26, 1971.

Leading Bangladeshi newspaper The Daily Star quoted National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) Chairperson Prof AKM Reazul Hassan as saying that the textbooks for the new academic year would state that on March 26, 1971, Zia declared the independence of Bangladesh, and on March 27, he made another declaration of independence on behalf of Bangabandhu – Bengali term used to refer to Mujib as “friend of Bengal”.

The Daily Star also cited researcher Rakhal Raha, who is behind the changes to the textbooks, as saying that it was an attempt to free the textbooks from “exaggerated” and “imposed” history. “Those who revised the textbooks found it wasn’t fact-based information that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman sent the wireless message [declaring independence] while being arrested by the Pakistani army, and so they decided to remove it.”

It merits a mention that Mujib’s declaration of independence is a widely accepted belief among the supporters of his daughter-led Awami League. They claim Zia, who was an army major and later a sector commander of the forces, only read out the declaration upon Mujib’s instructions.

On the contrary, supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which is headed by Zia’s daughter Khalida Zia, claim their party’s founder was the one to make the declaration.

Both sides have attempted to make their claims a part of the national discourse during their respective tenures.

The NCTB official, however, says it is not a point of debate. “This isn't a matter related to the Awami League or BNP. This is a national issue. We're trying to make sure that focusing on factual representation remains consistent.”

However, the constitution of the country proclaims Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the "Father of the Nation" stating that the telegram of the Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh was made by Bangabandhu on March 26, 1971. 

Notably, along with the changes in the textbooks, the NCTB has also removed the title "Father of the Nation" with regard to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

It merits a mention that the move comes months after the collapse of Hasina’s tenure at the hands of Bangladeshi students who started a movement against unfair job quotas in the country. With the movement taking the country by storm, it forced Hasina to flee to India, marking the end of her 15-year rule.

After the fall of her government, thousands of protesters were also seen taking down the monument of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the capital city of Dhaka.