'Revenge for Padua defeat in 2001' Abdur Rahman Khan The planned killings at the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters at Peelkhana were a conspiracy to weaken Bangladesh's defence capability and the border security. This was carried out as a delayed retaliation against Padua defeat of 2001. The hostile forces that want to see Bangladesh as a failed state and also want to grab military foothold in Bangladesh in the name of task force or peacekeeping force are behind the conspiracy, says Major General (rtd) Fazlur Rahman, a former chief of the BDR. Talking to the Holiday, Maj. Gen. (rtd) Fazlur Rahman said in confidence that the nation stood firmly together behind the armed forces to keep them restrained and avoid further bloodshed in spite of the shock and anger widely prevailing among the young officers who have lost a large number of their fellow comrades in arms. Enemies beyond border "Maybe it was designed to kill two birds in a single shot", he said adding that the enemies beyond our border always want Bangladesh to be subservient to them and continue to remain subjugated. Maj. Gen. (rtd) Fazlur Rahman served as the Director General of BDR during the previous Awami League government of Sheikh Hasina. He was regarded as a national pride after the BDR had successfully defended the Indian attack along Kurigram border in April 2001. But Gen. Fazlur Rahman and two other top officials of the BDR had been transferred ahead of the Indo-Bangla border meeting held in Dhaka in July 2001. BSF's attack in 2001 At least 16 BSF personnel were killed after the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) launched a sudden attack in the northern Kurigram district on April 18, 2001. Some 33 BSF men entered Bangladesh territory taking cover of smoke shells at Roumari area in Kurigram district and started indiscriminate mortar shelling on the villagers when the BDR, aided by the villagers, retaliated and defended the attack. BDR, the paramilitary force in Bangladesh, is mainly responsible for guarding the borders of the country. They are the vigilant sentinels of our national frontier. The British had first raised the Ramgarh Local Battalion in 1795 by recruiting the native population. The battalion was succeeded by the Eastern Frontier Rifles, which guarded the frontier from 1891 to 1920, when it was disbanded.. After the creation of Pakistan, border duties in this part were assumed by the East Pakistan Rifles. After independence of Bangladesh it was named the BDR. Apart from its primary task of protecting the borders, the members of BDR were given the additional task of checking smuggling in 1958. BDR's glorious role in Liberation War The BDR has a glorious history; its valiant members took up arms in an organised manner against the occupation Army of Pakistan during our Liberation War of 1971. After the war several BDR members earned gallantry awards - for example, Lance Naik Nur Mohammad Sheikh and Lance Naik Munshi Abdur Rouf were awarded the highest gallantry award, the 'Bir Sreshtha'; 8 others were awarded the 'Bir Uttam', 40 others got 'Bir Bikram' and 91 the 'Bir Patik' for their heroic sacrifice and deeds in the Bangladesh War of Liberation. 137 brilliant officers Referring to the last week's mutiny at BDR headquarters, former DG of BDR, Maj. Gen. Fazlur Rahman said the carnage of February 25 and 26 was not an outburst of the dissatisfaction of the ordinary soldiers. The killing of a large number of brilliant officers was something else conspired to weaken our defence forces, he asserted. On Saturday, as emotions ran high among the ranks after the massacre by the mutineers, the military intelligence chief Brig Gen Mahmud Hossain said 72 were still missing, 63 were dead and 33 officers were found alive. Getting panicked with the news at his old place of work, Gen. Fazlur Rahman instantly called one of the officers at Peelkhana to know about the actual situation and also called a Minister - a former course-mate of his in the Army - to take immediate action against the rebels. Gen. Rahman felt that the delay in military operation on the plea of the so-called political negotiations had aggravated the situation resulting in the murder of so many officers and the humiliation of their families. Command, intelligence failure He told the media several times that the incident indicated a command and intelligence failure. He also blasted the persons in power for not taking the matter seriously and even not responding quickly when the murdered BDR chief Major General Shakil Ahmed conveyed the SOS to the Army Chief and the Prime Minister. He demanded military trial of the killers who took up arms against the officers and resorted to criminal actions like looting arson and violation of women and girls by taking the opportunity of general amnesty. Maj Gen Fazlur Rahman wants that the government must restore command first and rebuild the border guarding force to defend the security of Bangladesh's frontiers. |
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