The countrymen yesterday observed the Martyred Intellectuals Day and demanded that the two key planners of intellectuals’ killing be executed like war criminal Abdul Quader Molla.
The two are Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman who collaborated with the Pakistani occupation army.
People demanded that the masterminds be brought back home from their hideout abroad and be executed.
Thousands of people including many wearing black ribbons and carrying national flags visited the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Rayerbazar and placed bouquets there in memory of the country’s great ones.
A visitor Murshidul Hasan – a student by profession – was seen apprising his younger sister about the history of the Liberation War.
Murshidul was describing the historic war portrayed at the memorial.
“We are happy that the verdict against Quader Molla was executed, but the key planners of intellectuals’ killing are still in their hideouts abroad,” he said.
Till afternoon, hundreds of people were seen roaming around the place and enjoying the photo exhibition held there.
“It took 42 years for us to bring the killers to justice. We are not happy with the execution of only one verdict, we want it for all razakars, particularly Mueen and Ashraf for killing intellectuals and for attempting to cripple the nation intellectually,” said Munira Chowdhury Rima who visited the memorial with her husband and two daughters.
On December 10 and 16, 1971, just before the dawn of Bangladesh, Pakistani occupation forces’ collaborators like Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman abducted Bangladesh’s intellectuals, killed them brutally and dumped their bodies in many places particularly in Rayerbazar and Mirpur.
Prof Munier Chowdhury, journalist Selina Pervin, Dr Rabbee, Dr Serajul Haque Khan, Dr Md Mortuza and Anwar Pasha are some of them.
Like Rayerbazar memorial for the martyred intellectuals, the same spirit was observed among people who visited the Martyred Intellectuals Mausoleum at Mirpur with different banners and chanting slogans for the execution of verdicts against war criminals.
People of all ages went there and placed wreaths to remember the sacrifice of the country’s intellectuals.
President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and opposition leader Khaleda Zia paid tributes to the martyred intellectuals by placing wreaths at the Mausoleum in the morning.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
