Call to form commission to unearth entire Aug 15 plot

An independent commission should be formed to carry out a thorough study to unearth the behind the scene plot of the August 15, 1975 carnage entirety to stop recurrence of such conspiracies in future, suggested noted academician Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique.

“Formation of a fact finding commission is crucial to unearth the detailed plot (of August 15),” Siddique told BSS in an interview on the month of mourning recalling Bangabandhu’s 47th martyrdom anniversary to be observed on August 15.

He said until now Bangladesh mostly remained dependent on the declassified secret foreign information to study the plot behind the assassination of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman along with most of his family members.

“Now we need to explore the local sources as well to compile and tally with the information obtained through the external sources to unearth the entire episode of the carnage,” said Siddique, also former vice-chancellor of Dhaka University.

He added the plot was hatched under a long drawn process in several phases and “If we could focus on every phase, the entire episode could be backtracked, finding how one incident was linked to another”.

Siddique, also chairman of the board of directors of Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), said some of the behind the scene masterminds could have taken part in the process sitting abroad while some others might have sent the assassins to kill Bangabandhu hiding behind the curtain, and the American CIA too might have a hand in the carnage.

“They also need to be unmasked for the sake of history,” he said.

Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq earlier said the government is working regarding the initiative to form the commission to unmask the behind the scene plotters.

Anisul Huq, who took part as state lawyer in Bangabandhu murder trial, said the commission would be a very important institution as it would have to perform a major duty.

Information and Broadcasting Minister and Awami League Joint General Secretary Dr Hasan Mahmud in several times also proposed forming a commission to unmask the behind-the-scene plotters of Bangabandhu’s assassination along with most of his family members 47 years ago.

He said he firmly believed it is necessary to unmask those who hatched the plot of the August 15 carnage and bring them to justice.

Hasan said he assumed that the people of the country also want a commission to be formed to reveal the conspirators.

Citing the importance of forming the commission, Prof Siddique referred to the examples of the United States and India which constituted such fact finding missions after the assassinations of President John F Kennedy, Mahatma Gandhi, Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajib Gandhi as he reiterated his call to form the commission.

The academician said the then US president Lyndon B Johnson had formed a commission on the assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, within seven days of the Kennedy killing on November 29, 1963 to investigate the assassination that had taken place on November 22, 1963.

Siddique, also a communication expert, said the Warren Commission had submitted its report within the shortest possible time and it was later made open for all and kept at libraries to allow the people of the world to know about the facts centring the assassination.

He said Bangabandhu assassination is not a killing of an individual or any family rather it meant for complete collapse of the country’s security system.

Prof Siddique said the country has carried out trials of the assassination of Bangabandhu but the entire blue print behind the killing that had began many days ago before August 15, 1975 and also continued after the carnage for long should be unearthed through a commission.

In continuation of the August 15 carnage, the grenade attacks were carried out on the Awami League rally targeting Bangabandhu’s daughter- incumbent prime minister - on August 21 in 2004, he said.

Siddique said the conspiracy is still going on, so it is now essential to form a commission to unmask the plotters and unearth the entire scenario centering the carnage to stop recurrence of such conspiracies in the days to come.