Bangladesh stands at forty three today and while it is a time for celebration, there is also need for introspection as we observe our Victory Day. Freedom
As I read the history about the role of the anti-Liberation people, who were active during the nine months of the Liberation War, I see that the leaders of this group of people opposed the existence of Bangladesh due to an anxiety they felt about the birth of this new country, by which they thought it would mean the end of Islam. This anxiety also helped grow in them an inherent mistrust in the Bengali language and culture. So their anti-Bangladesh attitude had a bi-focal origin: they thought Pakistan as a state was synonymous with Islam, and secondly, they thought, its survival also ensured the survival of Islam. And they had at best a dubious attitude to the Bengali language and culture. Their mother tongue was Bengali, but they had seen it as an obstacle rather than an advantage...
