Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
(1920-1975)
Sheikh Mujibur RahmanSheikh Mujibur Rahman was the founder of Bangladesh. He was one of the principal organizers behind the formation of the East Pakistan Muslim Students League (est. 1948). After partition 1947, he admitted to the University of Dhaka and was expelled from university in 1949. He revived the Awami League after the death of Mr. H.S. Suhrawardy in 1963.
On June 17, 1968 Bangabandhu was removed from Dhaka Central Jail to Kurmitola Cantonment and was charged with conspiring to make Bangladesh independent with the help of India. This case is known as the Agartala Conspiracy case. He was the No. 1 accused in the case. During the second term in jail, Mujib’s charisma grew so much that a mass uprising took place in his favor in early 1969. The general elections of December 1970 made Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman the sole spokesman of East Pakistan.
On 7 March 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (soon to be the prime minister) delivered a speech at the Racecourse Ground (now called the Suhrawardy Udyan). He closed his speech saying, “Our struggle is for our freedom. Our struggle is for our independence.” This speech is considered the main event that inspired the nation to fight for its independence.
On 25 March, Sheikh Mujib was arrested and taken away to West Pakistan. But just before he was arrested, he sent out a call for the Liberation War to begin. On 15 august 1975, a group of army adventurers assassinated him along with all his other family members. He is considered the father of the nation.
