Sheikh Mujib was at the helm of affairs after independence but took control of a country where Indian troops were still stationed. He convinced Indian authorities to withdraw their troops from Bangladesh, which they did by 15 March 1972. The Government of Sheikh Mujib repatriated the stranded Bangladeshis from Pakistan.
Mujib had an unfailing attachment to the Indians who participated in the struggle for Bangladesh’s independence. When Mujib asked Indian authorities to withdraw troops, it may have triggered the Indian authorities to go against Mujib.
A new book by Manash Ghosh reveals that rampant corruption and oppression that ousted former Bangladesh’s dictator Sheikh Hasina, the same corruption and oppression killed her father, dictator Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and her family members.
A difference between two events, Mujib was assassinated by the Indian RAW with the help from the Bangladesh Army, and Hasina ousted by a popular uprising in Bangladesh.
Note that during the final days, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his son were hated by the people of Bangladesh. Less than 18 people attended Mujib’s funeral, and Mujib has been considered the founding father of the nation.
Three key factors were the reasons for the fall of Mujib and Hasina in Bangladesh:
- Bangladesh, under Awami League rule, was a de facto state/union territory of India.
- Mujib and Hasina wanted to establish a hereditary dictatorship like North Korea. This is a good reason to hate the Mujib family.
- Mujib’s sons were oppressive and used to kidnap beautiful teenagers and rape them, something that Mujib never condemned.
- Mujib asked Indra Gandhi to withdraw troops from Bangladesh, creating fears in the Indian Government, which led to the Indian RAW operations in Bangladesh.
- Under the dictatorial rule of the Mujib family, India undermines the Bangladesh military and its national security.
The short answer is that Mujib was not a very good civil administrator. He had indeed made mistakes during his rule, but people are not trying to see why these things occurred. They blame him for economic mismanagement, Rakkhi Bahini, Famine and Baksal, but let me break down the history which the people need to see:
The assassinations of 15 August 1975, unprecedented in history in terms of the number of people killed, including the dictator Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, are shrouded in uncanny mystery.
The mystery remains unresolved even after justice has been meted out to the killers. The killers simply implemented a long-hatched conspiracy; the kingpins of the conspiracy have so far remained unknown to the common public, although rumours abound as to most of them. Indeed, the assassinations and the consequences that followed as a sequel remain the darkest hour in the history of Bangladesh.
A public opinion that has gained ground over the years is that a commission of enquiry be formed to investigate the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of the 15 August tragedy. It is further opined that the facts arising out of such a commission be published as a White Paper, and both are necessary for ensuring democratic governance. In one sense, democracy is the transparency of the state and public affairs.
Mujib was plagued by corruption and nepotism.
Although Sheikh Mujibur Rahman remained incorruptible, his tenure as Prime Minister was criticised for nepotism, corruption and favouritism, as many of his relatives and loyal supporters secured key positions in the government, key organisations, and the administration.
All of his family members, relatives and party leaders were corrupt. Mujib did not take any potential action to stop them. Sheikh Kamal, the son of Sheikh Mujib, was directly involved in bank robbery, rape and extortion.
Mujib played a crucial role in the struggle for Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan in 1971. He was a prominent leader of the Awami League and is often referred to as the “Father of the Nation.”
After independence, he was celebrated for his leadership and vision for a new nation.
Shift Toward Authoritarianism
After becoming the Prime Minister, Mujib’s government faced significant challenges, including economic difficulties, political instability, and social unrest. In response, he took measures that many critics described as authoritarian.
In 1975, Mujib declared a state of emergency and enacted the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, which effectively established a one-party state under the Awami League, banning all opposition parties. This move was seen as a significant shift toward dictatorial governance.
His government was criticised for suppressing dissent, restricting press freedom, and curtailing civil liberties.
Indian involvement in the assassination of Mujib
The mysterious death in 1974 in Dhaka of a senior officer of India’s external intelligence agency, who had been serving as a secret emissary of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was a precursor to the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in August 1975, a new book has revealed.
Veteran journalist Manash Ghosh, in his recently published book Mujib’s Blunders: The Power and the Plot Behind His Killing, has written that Phanindra Nath Banerjee, Joint Director of the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), was found dead in his room at the Intercontinental Hotel in Dhaka in July 1974. The incident, he noted, was never thoroughly investigated by either India or Bangladesh.
Manash Ghosh’s Mujib’s Blunders suggests Phanindra Nath Banerjee’s death preceded and possibly foreshadowed the 1975 coup.
Economic mismanagement
Economic mismanagement occurred during the Mujib-led government because he assigned all the essential jobs to people with no experience in their roles. He couldn’t provide jobs for those who had experience is because Pakistan killed all the intellectual people who could lead a country during November of 1971 as they knew that they were losing the war and didn’t want Bangladesh to emerge as a country also they destroyed what was already then the industrialized Bangladesh and set the banks on fire which led to shortage of Bank notes the reason why farmers had to sell their crops very cheaply.
Rakkhi Bahini (National Security Forces)
Mujib established a paramilitary guard of 10,000, loyal only to him, a parallel force compared to the regular army. It was called the National Security Force and received priority in supplies and equipment as well as general privileges. Like its counterpart in Pakistan, this force “became a bone in the throat of the regular army, especially the repatriate elements, and was an important factor in Mujib’s downfall”
Rakkhi Bahini was an idea conceived by Tajuddin Ahmed, inspired by the Chinese and Soviet governments, to establish a force dedicated and loyal to the government. Mujib was not fond of that idea but had to approve of it because the country needed an elite force at the time, even though the Rakkhi Bahini just caused even more problems.
Rakkhi Bahini had become a parallel force and received more resources than the army, navy and air force. Mujib had a mistrust of the military, as Hasina did.
The famine
The famine happened because of heavy rainfall that ruined the rice crops across the country in 1974, and the United States refused to help us because of our jute trade with Cuba; if they had helped, so many people wouldn’t have died.
Bakshal Party
Bakshal is one of the many grave mistakes Mujib made. People perceive him as a man driven by power, but the reality is that his government was failing. In response, he established a people-oriented party, where all parties would contribute significantly to the country’s development. Still, the thing is that the parties that didn’t decide to join saw this as a man hungry for power, so Mujib abolished all other political parties that weren’t part of Baksal.
The military men who killed him were afraid that they would be destroyed, so they killed him and his family, but still on August 15 1975.
With no surprise, Bangladeshis have celebrated Mujib and his family members’ deaths on the streets of Dhaka and in the entire country.
Bangladeshis started to depict Major Dalim as a hero. Hasina remained unchanged, becoming a true democratic leader who values freedom of speech and free elections. She turned herself into a dictator by following her father’s footsteps.
The truth is, Hasina only uses Mujib for the Awami League cult and propaganda to gain votes. Mujib himself didn’t want this sort of statue of himself; otherwise, he could have installed his own statue in the country. He didn’t even like his face on the banknotes. Hasina established her father, Mujib, as the cult of the Awami League in Bangladesh.
Conclusion
While Mujib’s early leadership was marked by democratic principles and a focus on nation-building, his later years in power were characterised by increasing authoritarianism.
Bangladeshis label Mujib and Hasina as dictators without a shadow of doubt. His legacy remains a topic of debate in Bangladesh and beyond, reflecting both his role in independence and his later dictatorial governance style.
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