Martyred Intellectuals Day being observed
The nation is observing the Martyred Intellectuals’ Day on Thursday paying rich tributes to the intellectuals who were killed systematically by the Pakistan occupation army and their local collaborators at the fag-end of the country's Liberation War in 1971.
Sensing an imminent defeat, the Pakistani occupation army and their local collaborators carried out the cold-blooded mass murders under a carefully thought-out plan to intellectually cripple emerging Bangladesh.
Renowned academics, doctors, engineers, journalists, teachers and other eminent personalities were dragged out of their homes, blindfolded, and taken to unknown places and then brutally tortured and slaughtered. Most of the killings took place on December 14, 1971.
Their bodies were later dumped at Rayerbazar, Mirpur and some other killing fields in the capital.
The martyred intellectuals include Prof Muneir Chowdhury, Dr Alim Chowdhury, Prof Muniruzzaman, Dr Fazle Rabbi, Sirajuddin Hossain, Shahidullah Kaiser, Prof GC Dev, JC Guha Thakurta, Prof Santosh Bhattacharya, Mofazzal Haider Chowdhury, journalists Khandaker Abu Taleb, Nizamuddin Ahmed, SA Mannan (Ladu Bhai), ANM Golam Mustafa, Syed Nazmul Haq and Selina Parvin.
The government has taken elaborate programmes to observe the day to commemorate the December 14 tragedy with due respect.
Besides, different socio-cultural and political organisations have also chalked out various programmes that include seminars, discussions and wreath-laying at Mirpur Martyred Intellectuals Graveyard and Intellectuals Memorial at Rayerbazar.
People from different walks of life has placeed wreaths at the Mausoleum.
To mark the day, Awami League hoisted black flags and kept the national and party flags at half-mast at Bangabandhu Bhaban and its offices across the country early in the morning.
Jamaat and some fanatic political parties assisted the Pakistani army through forming Al-Badr, Al-Shams and Razakar forces and perpetrated crimes like murder, rape, arson and looting during the Liberation War.
