President M Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday paid tributes to the martyred intellectuals by placing wreaths at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Mirpur on the occasion of the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
On behalf of the head of the state, Military Secretary to the President Major General SM Salah Uddin Islam placed wreath at the monument this morning to pay tributes to those who lost lives days before Bangladesh's final victory in the War of Liberation in 1971.
On behalf of the prime minister, Military Secretary to the Prime Minister Major General Naquib Ahmed Chowdhury placed the wreaths at the memorial at 7:05am.
The day is being observed on a limited scale due to Covid-19 situation.
On the night of December 14, 1971, over 200 intellectuals, including educationists, journalists, litterateurs, writers, physicians, scientists, lawyers, artists, philosophers and political thinkers had been picked up in Dhaka by Pakistani occupation forces, aided by their local collaborators.
The intellectuals were taken blindfold to torture cells in Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Nakhalpara, Rajarbagh and other locations of the city and later executed en masse at different killing grounds, most notably Rayerbazar and Mirpur.
Since then, the day is observed as the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
