The Dagger: Dominating Interests’ Class War In East Bengal, 1946 And After (Part III: Terror & torture)
By Farooque Chowdhury
30 October, 2015
Countercurrents.org
Diminishing activities: But a future with uncertain situation was looming in the horizon. “Workers of political parties, especially of RSP [Revolutionary Socialist Party] and Forward Block left East Bengal after the partition of 1947. They were many in Dhaka district. Most of our [Communist Party] activists and supporters [in Dhaka] were from the Hindu community. Almost all of our comrades were staying in the country, and there was no inclination among them to leave the country. However, question about future was creeping into their mind as they were related in many ways to the Hindu community. Publicity campaign was widely carried on among the Hindus, especially the families connected to the Communist Party so that they don’t leave the country. As a result, many of the families decided not to leave the country. Our publicity was effective in areas under influence of the Party. But an environment of fear started to spread among the Hindus as a result of organizing of the Ansar, an auxiliary force, and ultra-communal activities carried by the Ansar. Sense of uncertainty also spread among the Hindus as a result of discriminatory activities by a section of government employees who were targeting the Hindus. Moreover, confidence of the Hindus was seriously shaken by the Indo-Pak war on Kashmir, and communal riots in the Punjab, Central Province, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Kolkata, and in other areas, and because of death of a few hundreds of thousands of Hindus and Moslems in the communal riots. Despite all these our Party was not seriously harmed by exodus for quite some time after the creation of Pakistan. However, activities of the mass organizations of the Party squeezed down as most of the activists in these organizations were Hindus. Their initiatives lessened after the creation of Pakistan.” (ibid.)
Lies propagated: The process of protest and struggle continued. “In early-1948, the eastern province of Pakistan, East Bengal, experienced a number of incidents that included police strike in Dhaka and peasants-police clash in Madarasha, a rural area in Chittagong. Moreover, many militant processions by laborers and students were organized in Dhaka. After the creation of Pakistan, people assumed that the government in Pakistan will solve many of their basic demands. But those remained unfulfilled. Consequently anguish of the people surfaced. They began to express their anguish through these political acts. The Communist Party assumed, on the basis of these manifestations of discontent, revolution can be organized immediately by transforming these discontents if Party activists move forward with courage and initiative. On the basis of this assumption, directive was issued to Party comrades to transform these discontents into anti-government demonstrations. They took part in demonstrations and processions. They organized demonstrations, etc. of laborers and peasantry. Slogans with tint of adventurism were raised in the processions and demonstrations. This made adverse impression about the Party among the masses. The slogans included Yie aazaadee jhootaa haay, this independence is false. The public began considering the Party as the enemy of Pakistan; and our isolation from the people began. On the other hand, the Pakistan government, the Muslim League, and the Ansars carried on incessant propaganda against the Party. The following example shows the type of propaganda carried against the Party: At the later part of 1948, there was a train accident in Bhairab, a river port and trading center on the river Meghna. Many passengers died. Within hours of the accident, Liaquat Ali Khan, the prime minister of Pakistan, announced from Karachi, the capital of Pakistan at that time, and at least a thousand miles away from Dhaka: it’s a subversive activity by the communists. At a later stage, the railway authorities found in its enquiry that a band of dacoits organized the ‘accident’ to loot the passenger train. But the railway authority’s enquiry was not made public as that would have exposed the lie told by the prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan.” (ibid.)
Labor terrorized: The time could not be escaped. And, to put it simply, the time influenced activities. “Despite solid condition of our organization it began to squeeze due to desperate and unrealistic activities of the Party. The following incident is an example of our desperate activities: A meeting was convened at the Coronation Park in Dhaka town in mid-June, 1948. The meeting was convened by our women activists as it was not possible to convene the meeting in the name of the Party. Muslim League workers and police simultaneously attacked the meeting, and one responsible comrade woman was arrested from the meeting. Consequently our women front was lost. Many activists in the railway workers front and student activists were arrested within 1948 as they were distributing leaflets without any precaution. As a result, work of the railway workers union and the Students Federation was harmed seriously. Many laborer comrades were arrested as a result of assaulting intelligence agents, and for bringing out procession without considering whether that was the appropriate time or not. Many laborer comrades were terminated from their job, and a number of laborer comrades had to leave their job due to assaults by goons and police. Brutal tortures were carried out on our comrades in mills. Members of the EPR [East Pakistan Rifles, the border guard force in East Pakistan] and Ansar entered mills areas together, drag out our comrades from their places of work, mercilessly beat them in front of other laborers, burned their belongings, arrested a number of them, and those considered Party workers were dismissed from jobs. This created widespread panic among other laborers, and they started to keep distance from our workers. This was not only in industrial areas. In the rural areas under the influence of the Party, brutal torture was carried on on our comrades.” (ibid.)
Shackled organizers: “Warrants of arrest were issued against communist leaders and activists immediately-after the First Language Movement in 1948. Hundreds of communist leaders and activists, peasant, labor, women and student organizers were arrested. Jiten Ghosh went underground, and was moving from village to village in an effort to keep peasant organizations active. The situation was totally hostile with the overwhelming environment of communalism, repression by the Muslim League led government and the threat of arrest.” (Gayan Chakrabarty, Krishak Neta …op. cit.)
Torture & terror: “Jiten Ghosh was arrested in December 1948. In the jails, the Muslim League government imposed a reign of torture and terror on the democratic, progressive and communist prisoners. There were physical and psychological tortures. Its purpose was to physically and mentally demolish the political prisoners. Hunger strike was the only effective form of struggle the imprisoned political leaders and activists could resort to. Public support to hunger strike is a primary condition for its success. It was not possible to organize public support at the prevailing situation in East Bengal. It was a situation of threat-suppression-oppression by the Muslim League government. Despite the hostile situation the imprisoned leaders and activists initiated a heroic struggle to safeguard their political dignity and existence. In 1949, there were four hunger strikes. The last hunger strike in 1949 was waged for 58 days. At last, the Muslim League government bowed down. The imprisoned leaders and activists were recognized as political prisoners.” (Gayan Chakrabarty, ibid.)
Villages tormented: On March 9, 1949, a railway strike was called. “A number of workers were arrested during the preparatory phase of the strike. The strike was not successful. A part of railway track was uprooted near Joydebpur, a few miles from Dhaka, to forcefully disrupt railway connection as there was no support from railway workers. As a result of the sabotage, police began massive torture in the villages surrounding the place of sabotage.” (Gayan Chakrabarty, Dhaka Jelaar …op. cit.)
Dwindling party mechanism: “The situation worsened with the massive communal riot in Dhaka district in the February 1950. The riot was fully organized and provoked by the government. About 1,200 Hindus were killed in Dhaka town only. Many were killed along the railway tracks from Dhaka to Bhairab and Mymensingh. It was not possible for the Party to take any initiative to resist the riot. University student activists of the Party organized a peace procession in the Ramna area in Dhaka town at the early phase of the riot. But it failed to make any impact in countering the riot. However, a part of the commoners came forward to save the Hindus, and at later phase, to help them in many ways. Despite this help the Hindus were completely devastated mentally. Up to the riot, all the secret mechanisms of the Party were based on the comrades coming from the Hindu community. The major part of the active workers of the Party was also from the community. These arrangements broke down as a result of the riot. Wide part of the Party workers and supporters left the country after the riot. The Party squeezed down as a result of the loss. Comrades in underground had to pass days by roaming along roads due to lack of shelters. Financial crisis of the Party also took worst shape. (Gayan Chakrabarty, ibid.)
[Farooque Chowdhury writes from Dhaka. The article, here in five parts, first appeared in Frontier, Autumn Number, 2015, Vol. 48, No. 14 - 17, Oct 11 - Nov 7, from Kolkata with the following heading: “Radcliffe’s Surgery And After: Class War in East Bengal, 1946 and Communist Party”]