People from all walks of life, as well as various political, and socio-cultural organisations, paid tributes to martyred intellectuals by placing wreaths at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial in Rayerbazar on Wednesday morning, marking Martyred Intellectuals Day.
The ruling Awami League (AL) led by its General Secretary Obaidul Quader paid tributes at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Rayerbazar.
“The defeated forces of 1971 are still hatching conspiracies against the country… they want to take revenge”, Obaidul Quader told the journalists after paying tributes. The pro-liberation forces must be united to thwart the conspiracy, he said.
Recalling the significance of the day, Awami League Joint General Secretary Dr Hasan Mahmud told the Journalists that the brutal killing of the intellectuals was carried out jointly by the Jamaat-e-Islami, Al-Badar and AL-Shams.
“The BNP is the chief patron of the killers of the martyred intellectuals,” he added.
Those who were involved in the assassination of intellectuals are now leading the BNP, said Dr Hasan who is also the Information and Broadcasting Minister.
Later, Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, the central 14-party alliance, the family members of the martyred intellectuals and war-wounded freedom fighters also paid tributes at the mausoleum of the martyred intellectuals at Rayerbazar.
Scores of students from different city schools, teachers, and guardians including Dhaka city north and south units of Awami League, Awami Jubo League, Swechasebak League, Krishak League, Bangladesher Communist Party, and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JASHOD) paid tributes.
Bangladesher Workers Party, Jatiya Party, Chatra Union, Samajtantrik Chatra Front, Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU), Bangabandhu Sangskrit Jote, Crime Reporters Association, Shilpakala Academy, Supreme Court Lawyers Association also joined in.
Bangladesh Udichi Shilpi Gosthi, Kendrio Khelaghar Asor, Dhaka University, Jagannath University, National University, Lalmatia Girls School and Mohammadpur Girls High School also descended and paid the tributes at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Rayerbazar.
Just two days ahead of the country's final victory in 1971, more than 200 intellectuals, including educationists, journalists, litterateurs, writers, physicians, scientists, lawyers, artists, philosophers and political thinkers, were picked up in Dhaka by the Pakistani occupation forces, aided by their local collaborators.
The intellectuals were taken to torture cells in Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Nakhalpara, Rajarbagh and other locations in different parts of the city and later executed en masse at different killing grounds, most notably Rayerbazar and Mirpur.
