By Md Mamun Islam
 
RANGPUR, April 3, 2023 (BSS) – The Pakistani occupation army massacred ten brilliant sons of Rangpur on April 4, 1971 aiming at making the Bengali nation talentless in the predawn of the War of Liberation.
 
Talking to BSS, Rangpur District Council Chairman and former district unit Commander of Bangladesh Muktijoddha Sangsad heroic freedom fighter Mosaddek Hossain Bablu and relatives of the martyrs narrated a terrible massacre of the intellectuals.
 
The Pakistani occupation army in collaboration with their local non-Bengali Behari collaborators captured 11 intellectuals from their respective houses in Rangpur city on March 27, 1971.
 
"Later, the occupation army forcibly took them to Rangpur cantonment and conducted barbaric physical tortures causing intolerable pains and sufferings to the brilliant sons of Rangpur for several days,” he said.
 
In the small hours on April 4, 1971, the occupation army again took them to 'Dakhiganj Shwashan Baddhyabhumi' in the city and gunned them down by opening brass fire.
 
The 10 martyred intellectuals are: Advocate Mahfuz Ali Zorjes, Khitish Halder, Ehsanul Haque Dulal, Rafiqul Islam Rafique, Dhirendranath Shanti Chaki, Durga Das Adhikari, Gopal Chandra, Tofazzal Hossain Moharram, Uttam Kumar Adhikari and Pagla Darbesh.  
 
“Fortunately, one of them, Awami League leader Dr. Dinesh Chandra Bhowmick alias Mantu Daktar, who received eight bullets, escaped the gruesomeness fortunately,” Bablu said, quoting his talks with Mantu Daktar in 1971.
 
Mantu Daktar was then taken to India where he joined the ‘Mukti Bahini' after getting proper treatment and fought to liberate the country by killing many enemy soldiers in the war fronts until the ultimate victory was achieved on December 16, 1971.
 
Sushanto Bhowmick, youngest son of heroic freedom fighter Dr. Dinesh Chandra Bhowmick alias Mantu Daktar, told BSS that the occupation forces killed the ten intellectuals at early hours on April 4, 1971 to make Bangalees talentless.
 
“Heroic Rangpur people actually started the War for Liberation from the beginning of March in 1971 after becoming extremely angry when Yahiya Khan on March 1 cancelled the scheduled parliament sitting on March 3 and declared curfew on the day,” he said.
 
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman with huge hatred vehemently rejected cancellation of the scheduled parliament session and called a strike on March 2 in Dhaka and March 3 throughout the country.
 
As per the call of Bangabandhu, the whole nation was in an unprecedented non- cooperation movement against the Pakistani regime that declared curfew in the then East Pakistan on March 3, 1971.
 
“On March 3, 1971, thousands of people irrespective of caste, creed and religion brought out huge protest processions from Kachari Bazar point breaking curfew in Rangpur city as elsewhere in the country,” said Bhowmick, also a senior journalist.
 
Non-Bengali Behari Sarforaz Khan shot dead heroic boy Sangku Samajhder, 12, of Rangpur on March 3, 1971 at 9:30 am while Sangku was taking part in the massive non-cooperation movement rally that was passing through Alamnagar area in the city.
 
“The martyrdom of Sangku triggered mass anger among local people uniting them to snatch away Independence at any cost,” Bhowmick said, adding that the occupation forces started conspiring to foil the War of Liberation at the beginning of March.
 
Understanding the conspiracy of the Pakistani regime, the intellectuals of Rangpur along with politicians and student leaders immediately started organising the War of Liberation to liberate the country.
 
“Since then, the Pakistani occupation army in collaboration with their local collaborators continued genocide of independence-seeker innocent people, including intellectuals, till the Bangalee nation achieved the ultimate independence in 1971,” Bhowmick added.
 
Heroic freedom fighter Md. Matiar Rahman told BSS that massacre of the ten intellectuals on April 4, 1971 by the occupation army ignited hidden bravery in every Bangalee of Rangpur region inspiring them to join the ‘Mukti Bahini’ en-masse.
 
'Dakhiganj Shwashan Baddhyabhumi Smriti Sangrakhshan Parishad’ will observe the “Dakhiganj Baddhyabhumi Dibash”, martyrdom day of 10 intellectuals, through various programs to pay homage to the martyred intellectuals tomorrow.