Why India destroyed Liberation War records?
M. I. Ali
The Times of India, a widely circulated multi-edition daily of India, reported last week that all records relating to the Freedom Fighters of Bangladesh during the War of Liberation, kept at the Headquarters of the Eastern Command of the Indian Army in Calcutta, have been lost for ever. The newspaper quotes Lt. Gen. Jacob-Farj-Rafael Jacob as saying that when he took over the command of the Eastern Command in 1974, when he had asked for the files relating to the Mukti Bahini during War of Liberation of Bangladesh, he was told that all files and records on the subject had been shredded. Lt. Gen. Jacob refused to comment when he was asked who was responsible for the destruction of those records or why were they destroyed.
This is indeed, a stunning news, an unimaginable loss for Bangladesh and its history. This is probably the first time in the world that a victor has destroyed all records of his greatest achievement. It is always the vanquished who destroys his records to avoid any incrimination or to protect the parties who assisted and collaborated with them during their campaign. It is entirely understandable for the aforesaid reason if the Pakistan Army had destroyed their records but the Indian Army destroying their records simply does not stand to reason. It is also abundantly clear now that the matter had become known in 1974 and as such by this time it must have been brought to the notice of officials at the highest level in New Delhi.
Was therefore the victory in 1971, as far as the Indians are concerned, incomplete and all records of the Mukti Bahini, even those remotely connected with this subject, had to be permanently destroyed. What information could these files contain that made it absolutely imperative that they must be destroyed? What is more intriguing is that these records are primarily related to the Mukti Bahini camps in India. Did India have a different agenda in these camps than Bangladesh? An Indian agenda that couldn't be followed through and no trace of it could be left behind? Something, if it became public, could cause a permanent damage in its plans regarding its future relations with the new nation?
Mukti Bahini camp records could only contain limited information. Most of these would have been routine, dealing with the day to day affairs of the camp, lists of camp inmates, training imparted, lists of weapons, movement records and special instructions that may have been received from time to time. These can hardly be of such grave importance that they required to be destroyed secretly through shredding. However, the matters would be different if different groups within the camps were treated differently and these groups had different agendas.
Recalling the post Liberation scenario in 1971, the Indian army had taken over all Pakistani Army assets in the country and large numbers of Indian civil servants were also in the process of moving into this country. This did indicate the possibility of their long term stay and a role in supervising the defence and administration of this newly liberated country. Unfortunately for India, these plans had to be scrapped after Sheikh Mujibur Rahman forced India to withdraw its army and bureaucrats from Bangladesh. India had to quickly redesign its plans and this may have led to the destruction of the Mukti Cahini camp files that were maintained at the Fort Williams in Calcutta.
These files may have contained details of a fifth column in the Mukti Bahini whose role would have been to assist the Indian Army occupation of Bangladesh. These specially trained Indian agents in the Mukti Bahini would have been exposed if the destroyed files had become public and their usefulness to India would have been compromised. The nation will forever remain in debt to the brave members of the Mukti Banini and all efforts must be undertaken to ensure that their image is not tarnished by the activities of the fifth columnists, who may still be actively pursuing their old agenda.
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