Bimal Pramanik
Honorary Director, Centre for Research in Indo-Bangladesh Relations (CRIBR), Kolkata.
(Published in the UGC Approved Journal, Dialogue, Oct.-Dec., 2024, currently being published by Policy Perspectives Foundation on Behalf of Astha Bharati, New Delhi.)
We have witnessed a people upsurge organized by some Islamic radical student leaders at Dhaka during the month of July-August 2024 and ousted sitting Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina Wazed from the state power. It was astonishing for the world that Sheikh Hasina rapidly left her Prime Minister residence and fled to India for her personal security. She was four times full term Prime Minister of Bangladesh and won the general election in last January 2024 for the fifth term. Why it so happened? Is it policy lapses or failure to understand people psyche of Bangladesh? Sheikh Hasina led 14-party front – a liberal democratic political alliance of pro-liberation war in 1971. But the common people supported this movement knowingly in spite of its radical Islamic character. Though the leaders of the movement known as Samannayak i.e. coordinator suppressed their real intention and goal of the movement to public, saying it is ‘anti quota’ movement. But hours after Prime Minister left the country and took shelter in India; the real intent of the movement comes to the public. They have started to destroy all the monuments of the liberation war of 1971 including statues of the father of the nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman all over the country, even the house of Sheikh Mujib—a museum of Bangladesh liberation movement at Dhanmondi, Dhaka was ransacked and burnt. One of the top leaders of this movement opined that Mujib and his associates were the main conspirators to dismember the eastern wing of Pakistan that was the real conspiracy of India. It is clear that the real intention of this movement is to divert the Bangladesh ideologically as Pakistan today.
Now they have taken initiative for de-Mujibisation of Bangladesh deleting all kinds of photographs from currency notes, government offices and other places. On the other hand, to implement ‘Two Nation Theory’ as like Pakistan, all kind of atrocities and discriminations have come down on Hindus for de-Hinduisation Bangladesh. Ground level situations, government as well as Muslim society want to drive out Hindu population from their ancestral land, where they have been living generation after generations.
Why and how this kind of socio-political situation gradually developed in independent Bangladesh within a few decades? We can revisit some pages of history of Bangladesh.
From the very beginning since the liberation of 1971, Hindus who had earlier gone to India as war refugees and returned to independent Bangladesh again started migrating from the newly independent country to India, because they failed to retrieve their property and enjoy social security. Bengali nationalism was eroding fast, and anti-India sentiment was growing rapidly. After the assassination of Sheikh Mujibar Rahman (President of Bangladesh) in 1975, the relevance of the very Bangladesh concept of 1971 was lost, and Bangladesh became a state tilting towards Islamisation. All these show that the emergent idea of secular Bangladesh, particularly apparent in 1971, was not only missing but also probably mistaken. Mujib’s case of fighting against Pakistan had finally given way to a Bangladesh which never denied its Islamic character. On the surface, while Hindus imagined a new secular-democratic prospect, Muslims suffered from a bankruptcy of leadership, which threw them eventually into the clutches of Mustaq Ahmed, Ziaur Rahman and similar others after Mujib’s death. It was a pity that Bangladesh soon came out as a new country and a state with an overt Islamic identity.
The leaders of the Muslim society as a whole are trying to organize and consolidate Muslim masses on the basis of religion and madrassa teachings. The moderate views of a small section of the society are gradually being replaced by the radical concept. As a result, the differences with the other religious and cultural sects have become wider. Now Bangladesh has become the epicenter of India’s north-eastern region for propagating and promoting ultra-Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism.
The political behavior fitted fine with the general framework of the political objectives of the Bangladesh Republic after the initial euphoria of Mujib period was over. The liberation of Bangladesh from the yoke of Pakistan could not educate enough not could it have any stable imprint upon the people of Bangladesh to evolve a friendly attitude towards India. The anti-Indian attitude of various political leaders, whether one from Muslim League or from Awami League or from Bangladesh Nationalist Party, remains a common characteristic to shape and influence the complementary relation between the process of minority exodus and demographic expansion of the majority.
During the last four decades it had been possible to imbibe among the rural masses as well as among a large section of urban middle class a belief that Bengali Muslims have to strengthen the Islamic identity in order to maintain the sovereign entity of Bangladesh. There must be an admixture of Islamic culture and social values with the existing Bengali culture. Consequently, Islamisation of Bengali culture is more pronounced among the rich, middle and lower-middle class people than it was during Pakistani rule. The use of hejab, skull cap and burkha is evidently on the rise. Islamization on a gigantic scale is being manifested in the style of keeping beard and preparing dresses, cultivation of Arabic language and culture, and religious fanaticism to cap it all. During Pakistani time, not only the Awami League leaders, but also a section of Muslim League leaders were never seen to use caps, keep beard or recite namaj on an evidently political ground. Public meetings and functions were never in abeyance during the recitation of namaj. Madrassa education was totally neglected and non-acceptable compared to general education. But now political leaders are seen to accept Islamization vigorously on political considerations. One-third of the total student community is passing through madrassa education, and their role in the society cannot be ignored. As a result, the political leaders are trying to win the support of these masses of student in a manner acceptable to them. It is quite impossible that such a large section of madrassa educated students can be absorbed in the mosques and madrassas as imams or teachers. Where they will go? They cannot participate in the planning of activities in a modern age since they are more or less unfit, and as such, suffer from frustration. This is primarily the cause that they are being attracted strongly to terrorist activities. The modern society cannot accommodate them, and they cannot make themselves suitable for the modern society. Consequently, they hinder the progress of society and try to re-orient society according to their needs and ideas. This is being amply manifested in the cruel and destructive religious fundamentalist activities in recent times in Bangladesh. Apart from that, ISIS and other international radical Islamic terrorist organizations in present day Bangladesh are actively spreading their influence and attraction among the young generation in upper and middle class society. It is recent phenomenon. The AL led government of Bangladesh has recognized the Madrassa education (degrees) as equivalent to general education (degrees) so that the madrassa students can be eligible for government/semi-government jobs. It will have also a long term effect in orienting the Bangladesh society towards radical Islamic ethos.
Since the Pakistani days, Islamization of Bangladesh has been going on, which has grown very rapidly after gruesome murder of Sheikh Mujib. Madrassa education is the main plank of nurturing this process, which has been strengthened by certain policies adopted by the Bangladesh government from time to time. Islam has become the State religion according to its constitution. There always existed a propensity in Bangladesh society to hate the Hindus, Buddhists and Christians i.e. non-Muslims. The boys and girls imbibe this propensity from their families in the first instance, which get strengthened through religious teachings and madrassa education supported by the state. In addition, the ill effects of Islamic `fatwas’, coupled with ultra-Islamic militancy of radical Islamists, have complicated, and enhanced the feeling. With this social situation the claim of the politicians and intellectuals that the Muslims of Bangladesh believe in communal harmony, and they are protectors of the minority communities, is nothing but a wisp in the wind.
Till the governments of Bangladesh have been trying to strengthen Islam officially in the social milieu of Bangladesh, suppressing other religious communities. Conversion of members of other faiths to Islam is generally encouraged in the society; there is even a declared budget of the government for conversion of non-Muslims into Muslims. A clear cultural transformation in favour of Islamization has thus been taking place in the society. In this slough of modern Islam, even the Awami League led government, slow and steady, has been strengthening the very concept of Islamic Bangladesh, and ignoring the ideals of liberation war. So, the people in general cannot come out from the clutches of Islamic fundamentalists. Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh (2008 — ), campaigned hard against Bangladesh Jamat-e-Islam (BJI) and war criminals, but not against Islamic fundamentalists and radical Islamic ideologues (activists), who are killing bloggers and modern thinkers. There are many radical Islamic outfits that are active in Islamization of liberal ideas and the Bengali identity. The Awami League government itself is a party to it.
Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, decided that the government would build across Bangladesh model mosques and Islamic cultural centers in all districts and upazilas (sub-district), to facilitate Islamic education, and Islamic cultural activities will be promoted through these mosques. It was a commitment of Awami League in its election manifesto in the last general election of 2014. Even the syllabuses of Primary/Secondary school education have been changed in conformity with the ideological perception. Apart from that, mosque-based child and mass education programmes under the Religious Department (Ministry) of the government are being continued.
Shahriar Kabir, a veteran Bangladeshi Human Rights activist and journalist, has observed that “in a recent judgment, Bangladesh High Court repealed that, ‘Fifth Amendment’ of the Constitution and has given an order to revive the 1972 Constitution which is also corroborated by the Supreme Court. But the saddest part is that Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, has told a Mahajote (Grand Alliance) meeting that ‘Bismillah’ will be retained in the Constitution and no embargo will be given on religion-based politics and political parties by the government. Even ‘Islam’ as State Religion will stay. This stand of the Prime Minister is nothing but a clear disowning /violation of the Supreme Court verdict and mockery of the wishes of thirty lakh martyrs and of the spirit of Bangabandhu and liberation war. It is not reflecting the will of the citizens of Bangladesh who have elected AL to capture power in 2008.”
In the absence of deep-rooted liberal democratic practices in the society and politics, these types of developments are easily taking place since independence of Bangladesh.
After capturing power, Ziaur Rahman started unhesitatingly to incline Bangladesh ideologically towards Pakistan. Steps were taken to Islamise the Constitution by shrugging off the ideals of liberation war, and by the rehabilitation of Islamist and pro-Pakistani elements in politics, elimination of pro-liberation officers from the military, distortion of history, Islamization of Bengali culture, and induction of Pakistan oriented Islamic values in education and administration. He did all these to open a door to establish “Bangladeshi nationalism”. As a result, Ziaur Rahman could establish a foothold among the intelligentsia and in the society as a whole. Under the cover of Bangladeshi nationalism, the process of introducing Pakistani/Islamist trends of thought started flourishing smoothly. In the footsteps of General Zia, General Ershad, the then President of Bangladesh, accelerated this process further by introducing and enacting a bill in June 1988, declaring Islam as the State Religion (Eighth Amendment of the Constitution), General Ershad made it legal for the fundamentalist Islamic forces to flourish in the soil of Bangladesh without any hindrance. All the parties, including AL, accepted this amendment, because the people of Bangladesh were eager to find a new identity. The notion of Bengali identity, which was unobtrusively thrust upon them, disappeared, even if gradually, and they rushed towards their real identity. As a result, the growing religious chauvinism in the society attained such a great height that it becomes difficult for the politicians and the common people to go against it. Consequently, a supposed to be democratic and liberal party like Awami League has not shrunk from retaining ‘Islam as State Religion’ and ‘Bismillah-ar-Rahman-ar Rahim’ in the constitution for the purpose of spreading Islam smoothly.
Social Changes in Bangladesh:
Immediately after Bangladesh become independent, a process was set in motion to include the country in the Islamic block. Although mainstream Awami League (AL) tried to establish the freedom struggle on a nationalist pedestal, culturally, there was little transition from the Islamic psyche to the Bengali psyche in post-independence Bangladesh. After the death of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the process of Islamization completely overshadowed Bangladesh. Although religion is an important subject-matter for the common people of Bangladesh, there was a great chance of shaping Bangladeshi polity on the basis of the ideals of democracy and secularism, following the success of the liberation war in 1971, which upheld these ideals. A few people persisted in pursuing these ideals, but the dreadful massacre of liberation war leadership including Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975, drastically changed the fate of the ideal of secularism. Later, even the AL, which adhered to the ideals of Mujibur Rahman, failed to embrace the principle of secular political practice. To a large extent, at the fag end of Pakistani rule and the early period of Bangladesh, AL did not try to use religion as the primary source of its political influence. The determined use of religion in Bangladeshi politics started after the killing of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975. Religious influence flooded the society, like tidal waves. Even Sheikh Hasina, daughter of the Late Sheikh Mujibur Rahaman and presently leader of a professedly leader of a liberal democratic party like AL, performed Hajj a number of times and wore hejab. She had to sign a five-point-agreement on religiosity with an Islamic fundamentalist party, Islamic Oikya Jote (IOJ), for the purpose of holding Muslim vote bank. Moreover, she retained such provisions as ‘Bismillah-ar-Rahman-ar-Rahim’ in the preamble of the Constitution of Bangladesh, and ‘Islam as State Religion’ (15th Amendment in 2011), in spite of receiving the favourable judgment for abolition of the Fifth and Eighth Amendments, which contained these provisions, from the highest court of the country. From all such events, we can easily gauge the overall situation of Bangladesh.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other national leaders were killed due to an army coup. General Ziaur Rahman captured power in connivance with the Islamic and Pakistan lobby. At the time of General Zia, Islamic fundamentalist and radical terrorist outfits rapidly engulfed Bangladesh polity and society. The concept of international Islamic solidarity began to gain ground in the society, and the role of political leadership was important in this regard. In the early 1980s, a lot of madrassa students were recruited as volunteers to fight in Afghanistan and Jammu and Kashmir as a part of international jihad, which is an open secret today. No political parties and social organizations protested against these activities. Actually, most of the people thought that it was an attempt at building Islamic solidarity and unity. Gradually, a large number of students from Bangladeshi Quami Madrassas joined the international radical Islamic terrorist network, and thus Bangladesh got importance in the Islamic countries. Subsequently, a rapid growth was observed in the sector of Islamic NGOs. During 1982—1990, Maolana Abdul Mannan, former Al Badr leader, i.e. collaborator of Pakistan in the 1971 liberation war, acted as the Minister of Religious Affairs in General H.M. Ershad’s cabinet, and also remained the leader of Jamatul Mudarresin (an umbrella organization of Bangladesh Quami Madrasssas). Abdul Mannan played a vital role in organizing jihadi cadres (radical Islamist Terrorists) from Quami Madrassas for Afghanistan and Jammu and Kashmir wars, when he enjoyed the patronage of General Ershad.
After the defeat of the Soviet Union in Kabul in 1989, a large number of radical Islamist terrorists started to return to Bangladesh from Afghanistan, Jammu & Kashmir and Pakistan. At this juncture, a number of new terrorist outfits emerged in Bangladesh, e.g. Harkatul Jihad, Harkatul Mujahedin, Jamatul Mujahedin Bangladesh, etc. These organizations gained importance all over the country and abroad. Since the mid-1980s, Bangladesh state and society were getting recognized as a safe haven for all kinds of terrorists. From the 1980s, for about three decades, Bangladesh governments and administration sponsored several terrorist outfits, including radical Islamist and Indian North-East (NE) insurgent outfits, to carry out sabotage on the Indian soil. Nevertheless, Bangladeshi governments and administration always denied these facts. During Sheikh Hasina’s tenure, from 2009 onwards, the hidden truth about the activities of radical Islamic outfits, and a group of Indian terrorist organizations from north-east India, came to light.
In spite of concern about the activities of a large number of radical Islamist organizations among the liberal Bangladesh and international countries, there is also a soft feeling towards these Islamist terrorists all over Bangladesh, which helps them to grow inside the country. It is a social dichotomy.
The ground reality of the Bangladesh society changed much during the last five decades, and there are many Islamic organizations in present day Bangladesh. But the present interim government of Bangladesh has constituted with radical Islamic organizations like BJI and Hefajate Islam. Even a good number of ruling front members as well as advisors have close connections with these Islamic organizations through many religio-cultural activities. Now a deep rooted radical Islamist perception has engulfed the entire polity since independence in 1971.
Bangladesh’s views towards the Eastern and North-Eastern Region of India:
After the independence of Bangladesh the army finally established its roots in the Bangladesh polity through the assassination of President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and top leadership of the liberation struggle. They are also major beneficiaries of the foreign aid and development fund since then. Gradually, they have expanded their grip over the administration and society. As a result, all the governments succumb to the army even upon a little pressure, and keep the army-related issues out of discussion in parliament or public fora. Policies of all the governments are the same regarding defence and army since the early seventies. Gradually, both the number and strength of the armed forces are ‘increasing’.
Major section of the civil and military leadership as well as rank and file feel and express the idea, that 16 crores of people can hardly be accommodated within the present boundary of the country. It must be expanded by hook or by crook; otherwise Bangladesh will not survive in future. Secondly, there is a perception prevailing in Bangladesh that India will occupy Bangladesh in future – Bangladesh should be prepared to resist them. This propaganda has been going on since its inception in 1971. These are the two major thoughts that dominate the defence and foreign policies of all the governments.
The armed forces of Bangladesh always consider and preach the threat perception especially from India because of ninety percent of the international border being with India. They always suffer from this psyche that India is a big powerful neighbor, which may patronize/inspire any group that can create social unrest or anti-government movement if the ruling party acts against India’s interest. A few intellectuals think that by suppressing ethnic and religious minorities and following ethnic cleansing policies in the country because of an overwhelming majority of Muslims with a chronic anti-minority psyche, a social situation in the country has already been sufficiently provocative for the neighbor.
General Shafiullah—former chief of army staff and ex-defence advisor of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina think Bangladesh has to build such an army that the neighbor has to count Bangladesh. India and Pakistan fought three major wars and still they are not good neighbours. But they count each other not for their good relations (!), but they know both of them have the power to hit back. To earn respect, Bangladesh must have teeth like Pakistan.
Pakistan legacy still haunts Bangladesh. They are failing to come out the inimical perception towards India which was inherited from their predecessors, i.e. Islamic Pakistan. Most members of the Bangladeshi Muslim intelligentsia think, Bangladesh can survive only by the strengthening the Islamist identity of a Bengali Muslim, not by reinforcing Bengali nationalism and Bengali culture. A rapid growth of madrassas and mosques in the country since the mid-seventies to strengthen the cultural and religious orientation as Bangladeshi Muslims are relevant in this context. They feel that most of the contents of Bengali culture are still dominated by Bengali Hindus, and it is also a part of greater Indian culture. For that reason, Muslim social and political leadership have been trying to build up a parallel culture for Bengali Muslims since Pakistan days. Fifty years later, Bengali Muslim identified themselves as Moderate Muslims with more or less a separate cultural identity from that of Bengali Hindus. Of late, this moderate Muslim identity of Bangladeshi Muslims is being preached not only in the country but also abroad.
All the political leadership and elites of the country are pretending themselves to be moderate Muslims. But it is possible to take a different view. Radical Islamic fundamentalists have succeeded in influencing significantly the field of education, culture, society and politics. During the last five decades they have expanded influence not only over Bangladesh but also over the north-eastern region of India, especially West Bengal, Assam and Tripura. The aim is to organize Bengali Muslim masses for the greater interest of the Muslim community. Some features of the growth of madrassas and mosques in West Bengal and Assam are emerging significantly. In the meantime, so many social, religious and political demands of Muslims in West Bengal and Assam are already accepted by the ruling governments during the past three-four decades. Hence a parallel so-called Bangladeshi culture is being practiced in the north-eastern region of India during last two-three decades.
Another important observation is, since the days of the 1947 partition, the Muslim psyche in both the parts of Pakistan is suffering from the injury of losing half of Bengal and Assam. They ruthlessly have been pursuing the policy of ‘lebensraum’ since the days of partition. Acting perhaps on the philosophy of the great Italian, Machiavelli, who observed in the 16th century, “Sending immigrants is the next effective way to colonize countries because it is less offensive than to send military expeditions and much less expensive.” Bangladesh with a single-minded devotion has been following this policy and to say the least, it has been quite successful in this endeavor. The propagation of the moderate Muslim nationalism in Assam and West Bengal can be faster or slower depending on special political or social developments in the region. One may add that, in the present circumstances, it is hardly possible to launch a greater unity initiative among the Bangla speaking populace in the region on the basis of language, culture and nationalism. This greater unity idea is still haunting some socio-political forces in both the parts of Bengal, despite its lack of feasibility. It is difficult to organize any movement on the basis of narrow Bengali nationalism/chauvinism or provincialism against central government from West Bengal and Assam, sponsored by the local political outfits raising the issues of deprivation by the centre. But there is a speculation on the emerging possibility to being the Bangla speaking Muslims in the region under a moderate Islamic nationalism which may counteract the radical Islamic movement. But there are some new deterrent factors emerging in the political arena of West Bengal and Assam among the left and right wing ideological factions, and a group of intelligentsia against the process of radical Islamization.
The major political parties of Bangladesh and their servilely obedient intellectuals would hardly admit, that the Islamization and communalization of Bangladesh society has gone, the full circle during the last fifty years. In present day Bangladesh, what the common Muslim population is doing is grossly soaked in communalism and anti-Hindu sentiment, which precisely is the legacy of Pakistan. It has now become a wishful thinking that the fair wind of communal harmony is blowing in Bangladesh.
Leaders of the Muslim society as a whole are trying to organize and consolidate Muslim masses on the basis of religion and madrassa/religious teachings. The moderate views of the society are gradually being replaced by the radical Islamic concepts. As a result, the differences with the other religious and cultural sects have more and more widened. Now Bangladesh has become the main epicenter of India’s North-Eastern region for the propagation and promotion of the ultra-Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism in spite of the professed endeavor (!) by the earlier Bangladesh Government (ousted) to eliminate pro-radical Islamist terrorists.
Last but not the least, the present so-called government of Bangladesh headed by Md. Yunus has been working vehemently against India with the inspirational agenda of the ISI of Pakistan to disintegrate north-eastern region of India, West Bengal and Assam in particular by inciting radical Islamic organizations, hard-core militant cadres and dreaded terrorists from Bangladesh and abroad aiming at unstable the regional peace and development programmes.
Source: Bimal Pramanik,’Hindu Decrescent Bangladesh and West Bengal’, Centre for Research in Indo-Bangladesh Relations, Kolkata, 2021.
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