The
history of Bangladesh as a
nation state began in 1971, when it seceded from
Pakistan. Prior to the creation of Pakistan in 1947, modern-day Bangladesh was part of
ancient,
classical,
medieval and
colonial India.
The area's early history featured a succession of
Indian empires, internal squabbling, and a tussle between
Hinduism and
Buddhism for dominance.
Islam made its first appearance during the 12th century when
Sufi missionaries arrived. Later, occasional Muslim raiders reinforced the process of conversion by building
mosques,
madrassas and Sufi
Khanqah.
The borders of present-day Bangladesh were established with the
partition of Bengal and
India in 1947, when the region became
East Pakistan, part of the newly formed
Islamic State of
Pakistan. However, it was separated from the
western wing
by 1,600 km (994 mi) of Indian territory. Due to political exclusion,
ethnic and linguistic discrimination, as well as economic neglect by the
politically-dominant West Pakistan, popular agitation led by
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman grew against
West Pakistan, resulting in the
Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, which the
Bengali people won with the support of India. After independence, the new state endured
famine,
natural disasters and
widespread poverty, as well as political turmoil and
military coups. The restoration of democracy in 1991 has been followed by relative calm and economic progress.
[edit] Etymology of Bengal
The exact origin of the word
Bangla or Bengal is unknown. According to
Mahabharata,
Purana,
Harivamsha Vanga was one of the adopted sons of king
Vali who founded the Vanga kingdom.
[1] The earliest reference to "Vangala" (
Bôngal) has been traced in the Nesari plates (805 AD) of
Rashtrakuta Govinda III which speak of
Dharmapala as the king of Vangala. Shams-ud-din
Ilyas Shah took the title "Shah-e-Bangalah" and united the whole region under one government for the first time.
[2]
Vanga Kingdom
(also known as Banga) was a kingdom located in the eastern part of the
Indian Subcontinent, comprising part of West Bengal, India and
present-day modern Bangladesh.Vanga and Pundra were two dominant tribes
in Bangladesh in ancient time. The
Hindu epic
Mahabharata
mentions that the Vanga and Pundra kings took part in the battle of
Kurukshetra. Kouravas and Pandavas fought this battle near Delhi about
three thousand years back.
[edit] Ancient period
[edit] Pre-historic Bengal
Stone tools provide the earliest evidence of human settlements.
Prehistoric stone implements have been discovered in various parts of
West Bengal in the districts of
Midnapur,
Bankura and
Burdwan. The original settlers spoke non-
Aryan languages—they may have spoken
Austric or
Austro-Asiatic languages like the languages of the present-day Kola,
Bhil,
Santal, Shabara and Pulinda peoples. At a subsequent age, peoples speaking languages from two other language families—
Dravidian and
Tibeto-Burman—seem to have settled in Bengal. The discoveries at
Pandu Rajar Dhibi in the valley of the
Ajay River (near
Bolpur) in
Burdwan district and in several other sites on the Ajay, Kunar and
Kopai Rivers have thrown fresh light on Bengal's prehistory.
Pandu Rajar Dhibi
represents the ruins of a trading township, which carried on trade not
only with the interior regions of India, but also—possibly
indirectly—with the countries of the
Mediterranean.
[edit] Bengal in mythology
Some references indicate that the early people in Bengal were
different in ethnicity and culture from the Vedic beyond the boundary of
Aryandom and who were classed as '
Dasyus'.
The Bhagavata Purana classes them as sinful people while Dharmasutra of
Bodhayana prescribes expiatory rites after a journey among the Pundras
and Vangas.
Mahabharata speaks of
Paundraka Vasudeva
who was lord of the Pundrasand who allied himself with Jarasandha
against Krishna. Mahabharata also speaks of Bengali kings called
Chitrasena and Sanudrasena who were defeated by Bhima. Kalidas mentions
that Raghu defeated a coalition of Vanga kings and established a victory
column in the Gangetic delta.
[edit] Proto-History
Hindu scriptures such as the
Mahabharata say that Bangladesh was divided among the Janapadas:
Vanga (southern Bengal),
Pundra (northern Bengal), and
Suhma (western Bengal) according to their respective totems. Scriptures identify Vanga and
Anga in Bangladesh as Indo-Aryan. While western Bangladesh, as part of
Magadha, became part of the Indo-Aryan civilization by the 7th century BCE, the
Nanda Dynasty was the first historical state to unify all of Bangladesh under Indo-Aryan rule.
[edit] Overseas Colonization
The
Vanga Kingdom was a powerful seafaring nation of
Ancient India. They had overseas trade relations with
Java,
Sumatra and
Siam (modern day
Thailand). According to
Mahavamsa, the
Vanga prince
Vijaya Singha conquered
Lanka (modern day
Sri Lanka) in 544 BC and gave the name "
Sinhala" to the country.
Bengali people migrated to the
Maritime Southeast Asia and
Siam (in modern Thailand), establishing their own colonies there.
[2]
[edit] Gangaridai Empire
Though north and west Bengal were part of the Magadhan empire
southern Bengal thrived and became powerful with her overseas trades. In
326 BCE, with the invasion of
Alexander the Great
the region again came to prominence. The Greek and Latin historians
suggested that Alexander the Great withdrew from India anticipating the
valiant counter attack of the mighty
Gangaridai empire that was located in the Bengal region. Alexander, after the meeting with his officer,
Coenus, was convinced that it was better to return.
Diodorus Siculus
mentions Gangaridai to be the most powerful empire in India whose king
possessed an army of 20,000 horses, 200,000 infantry, 2,000 chariots and
4,000 elephants trained and equipped for war. The allied forces of
Gangaridai Empire and
Nanda Empire
(Prasii) were preparing a massive counter attack against the forces of
Alexander on the banks of Ganges. Gangaridai, according to the Greek
accounts, kept on flourishing at least up to the 1st century AD.
[edit] Early Middle Ages
The pre-Gupta period of Bengal is shrouded with obscurity. Before the conquest of
Samudragupta Bengal was divided into two kingdoms: Pushkarana and Samatata.
Chandragupta II had defeated a confederacy of
Vanga kings resulting in Bengal becoming part of the Gupta Empire.
[edit] Gauda Kingdom
By the 6th century, the Gupta Empire ruling over the northern Indian subcontinent was largely broken up.
Eastern Bengal became the
Vanga Kingdom while the
Gauda kings rose in the west with their capital at Karnasuvarna (
Murshidabad).
Shashanka,
a vassal of the last Gupta Empire became independent and unified the
smaller principalities of Bengal (Gaur, Vanga, Samatata) and vied for
regional power with
Harshavardhana
in northern India. But this burst of Bengali power did not last beyond
his death, as Bengal descended afterwards into a period marked by
disunity and foreign invasion.The development of the
Bengali calendar is also often attributed to
Shashanka as the starting date falls squarely within his reign(600 AD–626 AD).
[edit] The Pala dynasty
Main article:
Pala Empire were the first independent
Buddhist dynasty of Bengal. The name
Pala (
Modern Bengali:
পাল pal) means
protector and was used as an ending to the names of all Pala monarchs. The Palas were followers of the
Mahayana and
Tantric schools of Buddhism.
Gopala was the first ruler from the dynasty. He came to power in 750 in
Gaur by a
democratic election. This event is recognized as one of the first
democratic elections in
South Asia since the time of the
Mahā Janapadas. He reigned from 750-770 and consolidated his position by extending his control over all of
Bengal. The
Buddhist dynasty lasted for four centuries (750-1120 AD) and ushered in a period of stability and prosperity in
Bengal. They created many temples and works of art as well as supported the Universities of
Nalanda and
Vikramashila.
Somapura Mahavihara built by
Dharmapala is the greatest
Buddhist Vihara in the
Indian Subcontinent.
The empire reached its peak under
Dharmapala and
Devapala. Dharmapala extended the empire into the northern parts of the
Indian Subcontinent. This triggered once more for the control of the subcontinent.
Devapala, successor of Dharmapala, expanded the empire to cover much of
South Asia and beyond. His empire stretched from
Assam and
Utkala in the east,
Kamboja (modern day
Afghanistan) in the north-west and
Deccan
in the south. According to Pala copperplate inscription Devapala
exterminated the Utkalas, conquered the Pragjyotisha (Assam), shattered
the pride of the
Huna, and humbled the lords of
Gurjara,
Pratiharas and the
Dravidas.
The death of Devapala ended the period of ascendancy of the Pala
Empire and several independent dynasties and kingdoms emerged during
this time. However,
Mahipala
I rejuvenated the reign of the Palas. He recovered control over all of
Bengal and expanded the empire. He survived the invasions of
Rajendra Chola and the
Chalukyas. After Mahipala I the Pala dynasty again saw its decline until
Ramapala, the last great ruler of the dynasty, managed to retrieve the position of the dynasty to some extent. He crushed the
Varendra rebellion and extended his empire farther to
Kamarupa, Orissa and Northern India.
The Pala Empire can be considered as the golden era of Bengal. Never
had the Bengali people reached such height of power and glory to that
extent. Palas were responsible for the introduction of
Mahayana Buddhism in
Tibet,
Bhutan and
Myanmar. The Pala had extensive trade as well as influence in
south-east Asia. This can be seen in the sculptures and architectural style of the
Sailendra Empire (present-day
Malaya,
Java,
Sumatra).
[edit] Sena dynasty
Main article:
Sena Empire
The Palas were followed by the
Sena dynasty who brought
Bengal under one ruler during the 12th century.
Vijay Sen the second ruler of this dynasty defeated the last
Pala emperor Madanapala and established his reign.
Ballal Sena introduced
caste system in Bengal and made
Nabadwip the capital. The fourth king of this dynasty
Lakshman Sen expanded the empire beyond Bengal to
Bihar.
Lakshman fled to eastern Bengal under the onslaught of the Muslims
without facing them in battle. The Sena dynasty brought a period of
revival in
Hinduism in Bengal. A popular myth comprehended by some Bengali authors about
Jayadeva, the famous Sanskrit poet of
Orissa (then known as the
Kalinga) and author of
Gita Govinda, was one of the
Pancharatnas (meaning 5 gems) in the court of Lakshman Sen (although this may be disputed by some).
[edit] Late Middle Ages - arrival of Islam
Islam made its first appearance in Bengal during the 12th century when
Sufi missionaries arrived. Beginning in 1202, a military commander from the
Delhi Sultanate,
Bakhtiar Khilji, overran
Bihar and Bengal as far east as
Rangpur,
Bogra and the
Brahmaputra River. The defeated Laksman Sen and his two sons moved to a place then called
Vikramapur (present-day
Munshiganj District), where their diminished dominion lasted until the late 13th century.
Hindu states continued to exist in the Southern and the Eastern parts of Bengal till the 1450s such as the
Deva dynasty. Also, the Ganesha dynasty began with
Raja Ganesha in 1414, but his successors converted to Islam. There were several independent Hindu states established in Bengal during the
Mughal period like those of
Maharaja Pratapaditya of
Jessore and
Raja Sitaram Ray of
Burdwan.
These kingdoms contributed a lot to the economic and cultural landscape
of Bengal. Extensive land reclamations in forested and marshy areas
were carried out and intrastate trade as well as commerce were highly
encouraged. These kingdoms also helped introduce new music, painting,
dancing and sculpture into Bengali art-forms as well as many temples
were constructed during this period. Militarily, these served as
bulwarks against Portuguese and Burmese attacks. Many of these kingdoms
are recorded to have fallen during the late 1700s. While
Koch Bihar Kingdom
in the North, flourished during the period of 16th and the 17th
centuries as well as weathered the Mughals also and survived till the
advent of the British.
[edit] Deva Kingdom
The
Deva Kingdom was a
Hindu dynasty of medieval
Bengal that ruled over eastern Bengal after the collapse
Sena Empire. The capital of this dynasty was
Bikrampur in present-day
Munshiganj District of
Bangladesh. The inscriptional evidences show that his kingdom was extended up to the present-day
Comilla-
Noakhali-
Chittagong region. A later ruler of the dynasty
Ariraja-Danuja-Madhava Dasharatha-Deva extended his kingdom to cover much of
East Bengal.
[3] The end of this dynasty is not yet known.
[edit] Turkic rule
[edit] Khilji maliks
The period after Bakhtiar Khilji's death in 1207 devolved into
infighting among the Khiljis - representative of a pattern of succession
struggles and intra-empire intrigues during later Turkic regimes.
Ghiyasuddin Iwaz Khalji prevailed and extended the Sultan's domain south
to
Jessore and made the eastern Bang province a tributary. The capital was made at
Lakhnauti on the Ganges near the older Bengal capital of
Gaur. He managed to make
Kamarupa and Trihut pay tribute to him. But he was later defeated by Shams-ud-Din
Iltutmish.
[edit] Mameluk rule
The weak successors of Iltutmish encouraged the local governors to
declare independence. Bengal was sufficiently remote from Delhi that its
governors would declare independence on occasion, styling themselves as
Sultans of Bengal. It was during this time that Bengal earned the name
"Bulgakpur" (land of the rebels). Tughral Togun Khan added
Oudh and
Bihar
to Bengal. Mughisuddin Yuzbak also conquered Bihar and Oudh from Delhi
but was killed during an unsuccessful expedition in Assam. Two Turkic
attempts to push east of the broad
Jamuna and Brahmaputra rivers were repulsed, but a third led by
Mughisuddin Tughral conquered the
Sonargaon area south of Dhaka to
Faridpur,
bringing the Sen Kingdom officially to an end by 1277. Mughisuddin
Tughral repulsed two massive attacks of the sultanate of Delhi before
finally being defeated and killed by
Ghiyas ud din Balban.,
[edit] Mahmud Shahi dynasty
Mahmud Shahi dynasty started when Nasiruddin Bughra Khan declared
independence in Bengal. Thus Bengal regained her independence back.
Nasiruddin Bughra Khan and his successors ruled Bengal for 23 years
finally being incorporated into Delhi Sultanate by Ghyiasuddin Tughlaq.
[edit] Ilyas Shahi dynasty
Shamsuddin Iliyas Shah
founded an independent dynasty that lasted from 1342-1487. The dynasty
successfully repulsed attempts by Delhi to conquer them. They continued
to reel in the territory of modern-day Bengal, reaching to
Khulna in the south and
Sylhet
in the east. The sultans advanced civic institutions and became more
responsive and "native" in their outlook and cut loose from Delhi.
Considerable architectural projects were completed including the massive
Adina Mosque and the Darasbari Mosque which still stands in Bangladesh near the border. The Sultans of
Bengal were patrons of
Bengali literature
and began a process in which Bengali culture and identity would
flourish. The Ilyas Shahi Dynasty was interrupted by an uprising by the
Hindus under
Raja Ganesha. However the Ilyas Shahi dynasty was restored by
Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah.
[edit] Ganesha dynasty
The Ganesha dynasty began with
Raja Ganesha
in 1414. After Raja Ganesha seized control over Bengal he faced an
imminent threat of invasion. Ganesha appealed to a powerful Muslim holy
man named
Qutb al Alam, to stop the threat. The saint agreed on the condition that
Raja Ganesha's son Jadu would convert to
Islam and rule in his place.
Raja Ganesha agreed and Jadu started ruling
Bengal as
Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah in 1415 AD. Qutb al Alam died in 1416 AD and
Raja Ganesha was emboldened to depose his son and accede to the throne himself as
Danujamarddana Deva. Jalaluddin was reconverted to
Hinduism by the
Golden Cow ritual. After the death of his father he once again converted to
Islam and started ruling his second phase.
[4] Jalaluddin's son,
Shamsuddin Ahmad Shah ruled for only 3 years due to chaos and anarchy. The dynasty is known for their liberal policy as well as justice and charity.
[edit] Hussain Shahi dynasty
The Habshi rule gave way to the
Hussain Shahi dynasty that ruled from 1494-1538.
Alauddin Hussain Shah,
considered as the greatest of all the sultans of Bengal for bringing
cultural renaissance during his reign. He extended the sultanate all the
way to the port of
Chittagong, which witnessed the arrival of the first Portuguese merchants.
Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah gave refuge to the Afghan lords during the invasion of
Babur
though he remained neutral. However Nusrat Shah made a treaty with
Babur and saved Bengal from a Mughal invasion. The last Sultan of the
dynasty, who continued to rule from
Gaur,
had to contend with rising Afghan activity on his northwestern border.
Eventually, the Afghans broke through and sacked the capital in 1538
where they remained for several decades until the arrival of the
Mughals.
[edit] Pashtun rule
[edit] Suri dynasty
Sher Shah Suri established the
Sur dynasty
in Bengal. After the battle of Chausa he declared himself independent
Sultan of Bengal and Bihar. Sher Shah was the only Muslim Sultan of
Bengal to establish an empire in northern India. The
Delhi Sultanate
Islam Shah appointed Muhammad Khan Sur as the governor of Bengal. After
the death of Islam Shah, Muhammad Khan Sur became independent. Muhammad
Khan Sur was followed by Ghyiasuddin Bahadur Shah and Ghyiasuddin Jalal
Shah. The Pashtun rule in Bengal remained for 44 years. Their most
impressive achievement was Sher Shah's construction of the
Grand Trunk Road connecting
Sonargaon,
Delhi and
Peshawar.
[edit] Karrani dynasty
The Sur dynasty was followed by the Karrani dynasty.
Sulaiman Khan Karrani annexed Orissa to the Muslim sultanate permanently.
Daoud Shah Karrani
declared independence from Akbar which led to four years of bloody war
between the Mughals and the Pashtuns. The Mughal onslaught against the
Pashtun Sultan ended with the battle of
Rajmahal in 1576, led by Khan Jahan. However, the Pashtun and the local landlords (
Baro Bhuyans) led by
Isa Khan resisted the Mughal invasion.
[edit] Mughal period
Bengal came once more under the control of Delhi as the
Mughals conquered it in 1576. At that time
Dhaka
became a Mughal provincial capital. But it remained remote and thus a
difficult to govern the region especially the section east of the
Brahmaputra
River remained outside the mainstream of Mughal politics. The Bengali
ethnic and linguistic identity further crystallized during this period,
since the whole of Bengal was united under an able and long-lasting
administration. Furthermore its inhabitants were given sufficient
autonomy to cultivate their own customs and literature.
In 1612, during Emperor
Jahangir's reign, the defeat of Sylhet completed the Mughal conquest of Bengal with the exception of
Chittagong.
At this time Dhaka rose in prominence by becoming the provincial
capital of Bengal. Chittagong was later annexed in order to stifle
Arakanese raids from the east. A well-known Dhaka landmark,
Lalbagh Fort, was built during Aurangzeb's sovereignty.
History repeated itself as the frontier Bengal province broke off
from a Delhi-based empire around the time Aurangzeb's death in 1707.
[edit] The Nawabs of Bengal (1717–1880)
Murshid Quli Khan
ended the nominal Mughal rule in 1717 when he declared Bangladesh's
independence from the Mughal empire. He shifted the capital to
Murshidabad ushering in a series of independent Bengal
Nawabs.
From 1717 until 1880, three successive Islamic dynasties — the
Nasiri, Afshar and Najafi — all related by bloodlines, ruled Bengal:
The first dynasty, the Nasiri, ruled from 1717 until 1740. The founder of the Nasiri,
Murshid Quli Jafar Khan, was born a poor Deccani Oriya
Brahmin before being sold into slavery and bought by one Haji Shafi Isfahani, a
Persian merchant from
Isfahan who converted him to Islam. He entered the service of the
Emperor Aurangzeb and rose through the ranks before becoming
Nazim
of Bengal in 1717, a post he held until his death in 1727. He in turn
was succeeded by his grandson and son-in law until his grandson was
killed in battle and succeeded by
Alivardi Khan of the Afshar Dynasty in 1740.
The second dynasty, the Afshar, ruled from 1740 to 1757. They were
succeeded by the third and final dynasty to rule Bengal, the Najafi,
when Siraj Ud Daula, the last of the Afshar rulers was killed at the
Battle of Plassey in 1757. The Najafi ruled till 1880.
Nawab
Alivardi Khan showed military skill during his wars with the
Marathas.
He completely routed the Marathas from Bengal. He crushed an uprising
of the Afghans in Bihar and made the British pay 150,000 Tk for blocking
Mughal and Armenian trade ships.
[edit] Europeans in Bengal
Portuguese traders and missionaries were the first Europeans to reach
Bengal in the latter part of the 15th century. They were followed by representatives from the
Netherlands,
France, and the
British East India Company. The Mughal
Subahdar of Bengal Kasim Khan Mashadi completely destroyed the Portuguese forces in the
Battle of Hoogly (1632). About 10,000 Portuguese men and women died in the battle and 4,400 were sent captive to Delhi.
During
Aurangzeb's reign, the local Nawab sold three villages, including one then known as
Calcutta,
to the British. Calcutta was Britain's first foothold in Bengal and
remained a focal point of their economic activity. The British gradually
extended their commercial contacts and administrative control beyond
Calcutta to the rest of Bengal.
Job Charnock
was one of the first dreamers of a British empire in Bengal. He waged
war against the Mughal authority of Bengal which led to the Anglo-Mughal
war for Bengal (1686–1690).
Shaista Khan, the
Nawab of Bengal, defeated the British in the battles of
Hoogly as well as
Baleshwar and expelled the British from Bengal. Captain William Heath with a naval fleet moved towards
Chittagong but it was a failure and he had to retreat to
Madras.
[edit] British rule
The British East India Company gained official control of Bengal following the
Battle of Plassey
in 1757. This was the first conquest, in a series of engagements that
ultimately lead to the expulsion of other European competitors. The
defeat of the Mughals and the consolidation of the subcontinent under
the rule of a corporation was a unique event in imperialistic history.
Kolkata (Anglicized as "Calcutta") on the Hooghly became a major trading port for
bamboo,
tea,
sugar cane,
spices,
cotton,
muslin and
jute produced in
Dhaka,
Rajshahi,
Khulna, and
Kushtia.
Scandals and the bloody rebellion known as the
Sepoy Mutiny prompted the British government to intervene in the affairs of the
East India Company.
In 1858, authority in India was transferred from the Company to the
crown, and the rebellion was brutally suppressed. Rule of India was
organized under a
Viceroy
and continued a pattern of economic exploitation. Famine racked the
subcontinent many times, including at least two major famines in Bengal.
The
British Raj
was politically organized into seventeen provinces of which Bengal was
one of the most significant. For a brief period in the early 20th
century, an abortive attempt was made to
divide Bengal into two zones, West Bengal and East Bengal & Assam.
[edit] Bengal Renaissance
The
Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early 20th centuries in Bengal during the period of
British rule. The
Bengal renaissance can be said to have started with
Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775–1833)
[5] and ended with
Rabindranath Tagore
(1861–1941). Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious
and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic
orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance,
and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.
[6]
[edit] Creation of Pakistan
Main article:
East Pakistan
As the independence movement throughout British-controlled India
began in the late 19th century gained momentum during the 20th century,
Bengali politicians played an active role in
Mohandas Gandhi's
Congress Party and
Mohammad Ali Jinnah's
Muslim League, exposing the opposing forces of ethnic and
religious nationalism.
By exploiting the latter, the British probably intended to distract the
independence movement, for example by partitioning Bengal in 1905 along
religious lines. The split only lasted for seven years.
At first the Muslim League sought only to ensure minority rights in the future nation. In 1940 the Muslim League passed the
Lahore Resolution
which envisaged one or more Muslim majority states in South Asia.
Non-negotiable was the inclusion of the Muslim parts of Punjab and
Bengal in these proposed states. The stakes grew as a new Viceroy
Lord Mountbatten of Burma was appointed expressly for the purpose of effecting a graceful British exit. Communal violence in
Noakhali and
Calcutta
sparked a surge in support for the Muslim League, which won a majority
of Bengal's Muslim seats in the 1946 election. Accusations have been
made that Hindu and Muslim nationalist instigators were involved in the
latter incident. At the last moment
Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy and
Sarat Chandra Bose came up with the idea of an independent and unified Bengal state, which was endorsed by Jinnah. This idea was vetoed by the
Indian National Congress.
British India was partitioned and the independent states of
India and
Pakistan
were created in 1947; the region of Bengal was divided along religious
lines. The predominantly Muslim eastern half of Bengal became the
East Bengal (later renamed
East Pakistan) state of Pakistan and the predominantly Hindu western part became the Indian state of
West Bengal.
Pakistan's history from 1947 to 1971 was marked by political
instability and economic difficulties. In 1956 a constitution was at
last adopted, making the country an "Islamic republic within the
Commonwealth". The nascent democratic institutions foundered in the face
of military intervention in 1958, and the government imposed martial
law between 1958 and 1962, and again between 1969 and 1971.
Almost from the advent of independent Pakistan in 1947, frictions
developed between East and West Pakistan, which were separated by more
than 1,000 miles of Indian territory. East Pakistanis felt exploited by
the West Pakistan-dominated central government. Linguistic, cultural,
and ethnic differences also contributed to the estrangement of East from
West Pakistan.
When
Mohammad Ali Jinnah died in September 1948,
Khwaja Nazimuddin became the Governor General of Pakistan while
Nurul Amin
was appointed the Chief Minister of East Bengal. Nurul Amin continued
as the Chief Minister of East Bengal until 2 April 1954. The abolition
of the
Zamindari system in East Bengal (1950) and the
Language Movement were two most important events during his tenure.
[edit] The Bengali Language Movement
Procession march held on 21 February 1952 in
Dhaka
The
Bengali Language Movement, also known as the
Language Movement Bhasha Andolon, was a political effort in
Bangladesh (then known as
East Pakistan), advocating the recognition of the
Bengali language as an
official language of
Pakistan. Such recognition would allow Bengali to be used in government affairs.
When the state of Pakistan was
formed in 1947, its two regions, East Pakistan (also called
East Bengal) and
West Pakistan, were split along cultural, geographical, and linguistic lines. In 1948, the
Government of Pakistan ordained
Urdu
as the sole national language, sparking extensive protests among the
Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan. Facing rising sectarian
tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed
public meetings and rallies. The students of the
University of Dhaka
and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on
21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police killed
student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil
unrest led by the
Awami Muslim League, later renamed the
Awami League.
After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted
official status to the Bengali language in 1956. In 2000,
UNESCO declared 21 February
International Mother Language Day for the whole world to celebrate,
[7] in tribute to the Language Movement and the ethno-linguistic rights of people around the world.
The Language Movement catalysed the assertion of Bengali national
identity in Pakistan, and became a forerunner to Bengali nationalist
movements, including the
6-point movement and subsequently the
Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. In Bangladesh, 21 February is observed as
Language Movement Day, a national holiday. The
Shaheed Minar monument was constructed near Dhaka Medical College in memory of the movement and its victims.
[edit] Politics: 1954–1970
The first election for East Bengal Provincial Assembly was held between 8 March and 12 March 1954. The
Awami Muslim League,
Krishak-Sramik Party and
Nezam-e-Islam formed the
United Front, on the basis of 21-points agenda.
Notable pledges contained in the 21-points were:
- making Bengali one of the main state languages
- autonomy for the province
- reforms in education
- independence of the judiciary
- making the legislative assembly effective
The United Front won 215 out of 237 Muslim seats in the election. The ruling Muslim League got only nine seats.
Khilafat-E-Rabbani Party
got one, while the independents got twelve seats. Later, seven
independent members joined the United Front while one joined the Muslim
League.
There were numerous reasons for the debacle of the Muslim League.
Above all, the Muslim League regime angered all sections of the people
of Bengal by opposing the demand for recognition of Bengali as one of
the state languages and by ordering the massacre of 1952.
The United Front got the opportunity to form the provincial
government after winning absolute majority in the 1954 election. Of the
222 United Front seats, the Awami Muslim League had won 142,
Krishak-Sramik Party 48, Nezam-i-Islam 19, and
Ganatantri Dal 13.
The major leaders of the United Front were Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy and
Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani of Awami Muslim League and
A. K. Fazlul Huq
of Krishak-Sramik Party. Suhrawardy and Bhasani did not take part in
the election and Fazlul Huq was invited to form the government. But a
rift surfaced at the very outset on the question of formation of the
cabinet. The unity and solidarity among the component parties of the
United Front soon evaporated. Finally, on 15 May,
Fazlul Huq arrived at an understanding with the Awami Muslim League and formed a 14-member cabinet with five members from that party.
But this cabinet lasted for only fourteen days. The Muslim League
could not concede defeat in the elections in good grace. So, they
resorted to conspiracies to dismiss the United Front government. In the
third week of May, there were bloody riots between Bengali and
non-Bengali workers in different mills and factories of East Bengal. The
United Front government was blamed for failing to control the law and
order situation in the province.
Fazlul Huq was then quoted in an interview taken by
The New York Times
correspondent John P Callaghan and published in a distorted form that
he wanted the independence of East Bengal. Finally, on 29 May 1954, the
United Front government was dismissed by the central government and
Governor's rule was imposed in the province, which lasted till 2 June
1955.
Curiously enough within two months of his sacking, Fazlul Huq was
appointed the central Home Minister. As Home Minister, Fazlul Huq
utilised his influence to bring his party to power in East Bengal.
Naturally, the United Front broke up. The Muslim members of the United
Front split into two groups. In 1955 the Awami Muslim League adopted the
path of secularism and non-communalism, erased the word 'Muslim' from
its nomenclature and adopted the name "Awami League".
[8]
Great differences began developing between the two wings of Pakistan.
While the west had a minority share of Pakistan's total population, it
had the largest share of revenue allocation, industrial development,
agricultural reforms and civil development projects. Pakistan's military
and civil services were dominated by the fair-skinned, Persian-cultured
Punjabis and
Afghans.
Only one regiment in the Pakistani Army was Bengali. And many Bengali
Pakistanis could not share the natural enthusiasm for the
Kashmir issue, which they felt was leaving East Pakistan more vulnerable and threatened as a result.
[edit] Independence
Illustration showing military units and troop movements during the war.
After the Awami League won all the East Pakistan seats of the
Pakistan's National Assembly in the 1970-71 elections, West Pakistan
opened talks with the East on constitutional questions about the
division of power between the central government and the provinces, as
well as the formation of a national government headed by the Awami
League.
The talks proved unsuccessful, however, and on March 1, 1971, Pakistani President
Yahya Khan indefinitely postponed the pending National Assembly session, precipitating massive civil disobedience in East Pakistan.
On March 2, 1971, a group of students, led by
A S M Abdur Rob,
student leader & VP of DUCSU (Dhaka University Central Students
Union) raised the new (proposed) flag of Bangladesh under the direction
of
Swadhin Bangla Nucleus.
On March 3, 1971, student leader Sahjahan Siraj read the Sadhinotar
Ishtehar (Declaration of independence) at Paltan Maidan in front of
Bangabandhu Shaikh Mujib along with student and public gathering under
the direction of
Swadhin Bangla Nucleus
On March 7, there was a historical public gathering in Paltan Maidan
to hear the guideline for the revolution and independence from Shaikh
Mujib, the frontier leader of movement that time. Although he avoided
the direct speech of independence as the talks were still underway, he
influenced the mob to prepare for the separation war. The speech is
still considered a key moment in the war of liberation, and is
remembered for the phrase, "Ebarer Shongram Muktir Shongram, Ebarer
Shongram Shadhinotar Shongram...." ("This time, the revolution is for
freedom; this time, the revolution is for liberation....").
[edit] Formal Declaration of Independence
After the military crackdown by the Pakistan army began during the early hours of March 26, 1971
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
was arrested and the political leaders dispersed, mostly fleeing to
neighbouring India where they organized a provisional government
afterwards. Before being held up by the Pakistani Army Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman gave a hand note of the declaration of the independence of
Bangladesh and it was circulated amongst people and transmitted by the
then East Pakistan Rifles' wireless transmitter. Bengali Army Major
Zia-Ur-Rahman captured Kalurghat Radio Station in Chittagong and read
the declaration of independence of Bangladesh. Later that day, Major Zia
read the declaration of independence on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman,
"I, Major Zia-ur-Rahman, on behalf of our great national leader and
supreme commandar Sheikh Mujibur Rahman do hereby proclaim the
independence of Bangladesh."
The
Provisional Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh was formed in Meherpur, (later renamed as
Mujibnagar a place adjacent to the Indian border). Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was announced to be the head of the state.
Tajuddin Ahmed
became the prime minister of the government. There the war plan was
sketched with armed forces established named "Muktibahini" (freedom
fighters).
M. A. G. Osmani
was assigned as the Chief of the force. The land sketched into 11
sectors under 11 sector commanders. Along with this sectors on the later
part of the war Three special forces were formed namely Z Force, S
Force and K Force. These three forces name were derived from the initial
letter of the commandar's name. The training and most of the arms and
ammunitions were arranged by the Meherpur government which were
supported by India. As fighting grew between the Pakistan Army and the
Bengali
Mukti Bahini, an estimated ten million Bengalis, mainly Hindus, sought refuge in the Indian states of
Assam,
Tripura and
West Bengal.
The crisis in East Pakistan produced new strains in Pakistan's
troubled relations with India. The two nations had fought a war in 1965,
mainly in the west, but the pressure of millions of refugees escaping
into India in autumn of 1971 as well as
Pakistani aggression
reignited hostilities with Pakistan. Indian sympathies lay with East
Pakistan, and on December 3, 1971, India intervened on the side of the
Bangladeshis.
[edit] Surrender and aftermath
Indian Lt. Gen J.S. Aurora and Pakistani Lt. Gen A.A.K. Niazi's signatures on the Instrument of Surrender.
On 16 December 1971, Lt. Gen
A. A. K. Niazi,
CO of Pakistan Army forces located in East Pakistan signed the
Instrument of Surrender and the nation of
Bangla Desh ("Country of Bengal") was finally established the following day. At the time of surrender only a few countries had provided
diplomatic recognition to the new nation. Over 90,000 Pakistani troops surrendered to the Indian forces making it the largest surrender since
World War II.
[9][10]
The new country changed its name to Bangladesh on January 11, 1972 and
became a parliamentary democracy under a constitution. Shortly
thereafter on March 19 Bangladesh signed a friendship treaty with
India.Bangladesh sought admission in the UN with most voting in its
favour, but China vetoed this as Pakistan was its key ally.
[11] The United States, also a key ally of Pakistan, was one of the last nations to accord Bangladesh recognition.
[12] To ensure a smooth transition, in 1972 the
Simla Agreement
was signed between India and Pakistan. The treaty ensured that Pakistan
recognised the independence of Bangladesh in exchange for the return of
the Pakistani PoWs. India treated all the PoWs in strict accordance
with the Geneva Convention, rule 1925.
[13] It released more than 93,000 Pakistani PoWs in five months.
[9]
Further, as a gesture of goodwill, nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for
war crimes by Bengalis were also pardoned by India. The accord also gave back more than 13,000 km
2
(5,019 sq mi) of land that Indian troops had seized in West Pakistan
during the war, though India retained a few strategic areas;
[14] most notably
Kargil (which would in turn again be the focal point for
a warbetween
the two nations in 1999). This was done as a measure of promoting
"lasting peace" and was acknowledged by many observers as a sign of
maturity by India. But some in India felt that the treaty had been too
lenient to Bhutto, who had pleaded for leniency, arguing that the
fragile democracy in Pakistan would crumble if the accord was perceived
as being overly harsh by Pakistanis.
[edit] Swadhin Bangla Nucleus
Serajul Alam Khan, Abdur Razzak, Kazi Arif Ahmed formed
Swadhin Bangla Nucleus (1962); a secret organisation, which spearheaded the war of independence in 1971.
[edit] Post-independence
[edit] Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, 1972–75
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
came to office with immense personal popularity but had difficulty
transforming this popular support into the political strength needed to
function as head of government. The 1972 constitution adopted as state
policy the
Awami League (AL) four basic principles of nationalism, secularism, socialism, and democracy.
[15]
The first parliamentary elections were held in March 1973, with the
Awami League winning a massive majority. The new Bangladesh government
focused on relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of the economy and
society. In December 1974, in the face of continuing economic
deterioration and mounting civil disorder, Mujib proclaimed a state of
emergency, limited the powers of the legislative and judicial branches,
banned all the newspaper except four government supported papers, and
introduced one-party system baning all the other parties.
Despite some improvement in the economic situation during the first
half of 1975, criticism of Mujib grew. In August 1975, Mujib, and most
of his family, were assassinated by mid-level army officers. A new
government, headed by former Mujib associate Khandakar Moshtaque Ahmed,
was formed.
[15]
[edit] Ziaur Rahman, 1975–81
Successive military coups resulted in the emergence of Army Chief of
Staff Gen. Ziaur Rahman ("Zia") as strongman. In the historic 7 November
1975, "Jatiyo Biplob O Shanghoti Dibosh" the army captured the power
freed Major Zia. He pledged the army's support to the civilian
government headed by President Chief Justice Sayem. Acting at Zia's
behest, Sayem dissolved Parliament, and instituted the Martial Law
Administration (MLA).
[15]
In November 1976, Zia became Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA)
and assumed the presidency upon Sayem's forced retirement five months
later, promising national elections in 1978.
[15]
As President, Zia announced a 19-point program of economic reform and
began dismantling the MLA. Zia won a five-year term in June 1978
elections, with 76% of the vote. Democracy and constitutional order were
fully restored when the ban on political parties was lifted, new
parliamentary elections were held in February 1979. It was however
controlled election by the military so it cannot be called as full
restoration of democracy. The AL and the
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), founded by Zia, emerged as the two major parties.
[15]
In May 1981, Zia was assassinated in Chittagong by dissident elements
of the military. The conspirators were either taken into custody or
killed. Vice President Justice Abdus Sattar was sworn in as acting
president, and elected president as the BNP's candidate six months
later. Sattar followed the policies of his predecessor and retained
essentially the same cabinet.
[15]
[edit] Hussain Mohammed Ershad, 1982–90
In March 1982 Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. H.M. Ershad suspended the
constitution and declared martial law citing pervasive corruption,
ineffectual government, and economic mismanagement. The following year,
Ershad assumed the presidency, and won overwhelming public support for
his regime in a national referendum in March 1985, although turnout was
small. Political life was liberalized through 1985 and 1986, and the
Jatiya (National) Party was established as Ershad's vehicle for the
transition back to democracy.
[15]
Parliamentary elections were held in May 1986, but were boycotted by
the BNP, now led by President Zia's widow, Begum Khaleda Zia. The
Jatiya Party
won a modest majority of the 300 elected seats in the National
Assembly. The participation of the Awami League—led by the late
President Mujib's daughter, Sheikh Hasina Wajed—lent the elections some
credibility, despite widespread charges of voting irregularities.
[15]
Ershad retired from military service in preparation for the
presidential elections in October 1986, and won 84% of the vote.
Protesting that martial law was still in effect, both the BNP and the AL
refused to put up opposing candidates.
[15] In November 1986, martial law was lifted, and the opposition parties took their elected seats in the National Assembly.
[15]
In July 1987, after the government hastily pushed through a bill to
include military representation on local administrative councils, the
opposition walked out of Parliament. As the opposition organized protest
marches and nationwide strikes, the government arrested scores of
opposition activists. After declaring a state of emergency, Ershad
dissolved Parliament and scheduled fresh elections for March 1988.
[15]
The elections were held despite an opposition boycott, and the ruling
Jatiya Party won 251 of the 300 seats. The Parliament passed a large
number of bills, including in June 1988 a controversial constitutional
amendment making Islam Bangladesh's state religion.
[15]
On December 6, 1990, following general strikes, increased campus
protests, public rallies, and a general disintegration of law and order,
[15]
Ershad resigned. On February 27, 1991, an interim government headed by
Acting President Chief Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed oversaw what most
observers believed to be the nation's most free and fair elections to
that date.
[15]
[edit] Khaleda Zia, 1991–96
Main article:
Khaleda Zia
BNP won a plurality of seats and formed a government with Khaleda
Zia, widow of Ziaur Rahman, becoming prime minister. The electorate
approved changes to the constitution, formally re-creating a \In March
1994, controversy over a parliamentary by-election, which the opposition
claimed the government had rigged, led to general strikes and an
indefinite boycott of Parliament by the opposition. In late December
1994, the opposition resigned en masse from Parliament, and pledged to
boycott national elections scheduled for February 15, 1996.
[15]
In February, Khaleda Zia was re-elected by a landslide in voting
boycotted by the three main opposition parties. In March 1996, following
escalating political turmoil, the Parliament amended the constitution
to allow a neutral caretaker government to assume power and conduct new
parliamentary elections.
[edit] Sheikh Hasina, 1996–2001
Main article:
Sheikh Hasina
Elections were held in June 1996 which were found by international
and domestic election observers to be free and fair. The Awami League
won a plurality of the seats, and formed the government with support
from the Jatiya Party of deposed president Ershad. AL leader Sheikh
Hasina became Prime Minister.
[15]
In June 1999, the BNP and other opposition parties again began to
boycott Parliament, and stage nationwide general strikes. A four-party
opposition alliance formed at the beginning of 1999 announced that it
would boycott parliamentary by-elections and local government.
[edit] Four Party Aliiance led by BNP, 2001–2006
The four-party alliance led by the
Bangladesh Nationalist Party
(BNP) won over a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Begum Khaleda Zia
was sworn in on October 10, 2001, as Prime Minister for the third time.
[15]
An
grenade attack on a rally of
Sheikh Hasina killed 23 people on August 21, 2004. On August 17, 2005,
near-synchronized blasts
of improvised explosive devices in 63 out of 64 administrative
districts targeted mainly government buildings and killed two persons.
An extremist Islamist group named Jama'atul Mujahideen, Bangladesh (JMB)
claimed responsibility for the blasts, which aimed to press home JMB's
demand for a replacement of the secular legal system with Islamic sharia
courts. Hundreds of senior and mid-level JMB leaders were arrested.
[15]
In February 2006, after sporadic boycotts, the AL returned to
Parliament, demanded early elections and requested significant changes
in the electoral and caretaker government systems to stop alleged moves
by the ruling coalition to rig the next election. Dialogue between the
Secretaries General of the main ruling and opposition parties failed to
sort out the electoral reform issues.
[15]
In July 2001, the Awami League government stepped down to allow a
caretaker government to preside over parliamentary elections. In August,
Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina agreed to respect the results of the
election, join Parliament win or lose, forswear the use of hartals
(violently enforced strikes) as political tools, and if successful in
forming a government allow for a more meaningful role for the opposition
in Parliament. The caretaker government was successful in containing
the violence, which allowed a parliamentary end
[edit] Caretaker Government, Oct. 2006–Jan. 2009
On January 3, 2007, the Awami League announced it would boycott the
January 22 parliamentary elections. The AL planned a series of
country-wide general strikes and transportation blockades.
[15]
On January 11, 2007, President
Iajuddin Ahmed
declared a state of emergency, resigned as Chief Adviser, and
indefinitely postponed parliamentary elections. On January 12, 2007,
former Bangladesh Bank governor
Fakhruddin Ahmed
was sworn in as the new Chief Adviser, and ten new advisers (ministers)
were appointed. Under emergency provisions, the government suspended
certain fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution and detained a
large number of politicians and others on suspicion of involvement in
corruption and other crimes. The government announced elections would
occur in late 2008.
[15] As of November 19, 2008, elections were scheduled for December 8, 2008.
[16]
In the summer of 2007 the government arrested Sheikh Hasina and
Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh's two most influential political leaders, on
charges of corruption. Hasina and Zia have challenged the cases filed
against them under the Emergency Power Rules, which deny the accused the
right to bail. While the cases are under judicial review, the two
leaders continue to be imprisoned as of March 2008.
[15]
[edit] Grand Alliance January 2009–present
On 19 November 2008
Awami League &
Jatiya Party
agreed to contest the elections jointly under the Caretaker Government
to be held on 29 December 2008. Out of the 300 Constituencies in the
Parliament, Ershad's Jatiya Party will contest from 49 seats and Awami
League and members of a
leftist wing Fourteen Party Coalition from the rest 250 seats.
[17] Thus the Grand Alliance emerged in Bangladesh; known as
Mohajote in
Bengali
On December 29, 2008 Bangladesh went to the polls and the nation elected the Grand Alliance which was led by
Sheikh Hasina's Awami League and backed by
Hussain Mohammed Ershad's Jatiya Party. On the other hand
Khaleda Zia's BNP-led Four Party Alliance plagued by allegations of Khaleda Zia's
[18][19] and her infamous son
Tareq Rahman's corruption allegations,
[20][21][22] suffered the most embarrassing defeat ever in Bangladesh's history.
Sheikh Hasina became Prime Minister and formed the government and a
cabinet which included ministers from Jatiya Party although any post for
Hussain Mohammed Ershad, is yet to be decided as the earlier agreed Presidency seems elusive.
The mutiny of borderguards (BDR)
took place from 25 to 27 February 2009. More than a thousand BDR
soldiers took over the BDR headquarters, and held many of their officers
hostage. By the second day fighting spread to 12 other towns and
cities.
[23][24] The mutiny ended as the mutineers surrendered their arms and released the hostages
[25] after a series of discussions and negotiations with the government.
[26] 52 army died in the incident.
