Re: [mukto-mona] The allegation of opposition to the establishment of Dhaka University

Khundker myth seems to be over with latest information received from Prof. Das. I still wish to make comments on Roy. Obviously nationalism and professionalism are great virtues. But the nationalism that prompts a professor to ruin the career of his students simply in speculation that they would join his enemies is a perverted form of nationalism and professionalism. 

In our area the looters were Muslims no doubt, but Muslims also gave unconditional shelter to the Hindus. Many Muslims stayed away to be safe but many risked their lives to help the Hindus. Only one Hindu family  converted to Islam. He did it to save his business. He however reconverted immediately after liberation. 

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On Jun 4, 2012, at 7:38 PM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:

 

There were many instances during the liberation war, where Hindus took shelters in the Muslim households, and lived with them as Muslims. Those people switched their religious affiliation when Bangladesh was independent. Had there been no independent Bangladesh, they would have remained as Muslims forever. What are we going call those Muslim families? Were they communal? I don't know. They may not have any other options left but to convert them to keep them alive. Therefore, I am hesitat to call Dr. Khondkar a communal person.   Dr. Khondkar was anti-Indian for sure. There is nothing wrong in this sentiment, except that – Dr. Khondkar applied his anti-Indian sentiment on innocent captive Hindu students. He may have ruined many talented students' lives out of his resentment towards India. Therefore, he was a misguided anti-Indian person for sure, like millions of other Bangladeshis, who are still among us. These people should know better – they cannot punish India by punishing Hindus in Bangladesh. You cannot call this a 'nationalist' behavior, as Mr. Chakraborty did.  Can you?   Jiten Roy   --- On Mon, 6/4/12, Sukhamaya Bain <subain1@yahoo.com> wrote: From: Sukhamaya Bain <subain1@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] The allegation of opposition to the establishment of Dhaka University To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> Date: Monday, June 4, 2012, 6:36 PM   If M. H. Khundkar was actually 'against producing chemists for India', as Mr. Chakrabarty has phrased, I would not call that 'a great nationalist' even with a 'but ….'. I would not even ask, 'why did he take Hindu students at all?'   Of course, the phrase, 'against producing chemists for India', was really to mean "against producing Hindu chemists." As I wrote earlier, Khundkar should have known better; he should have known why the Hindus migrated to India; he should have known, acknowledged, and tried to mitigate the persecution that was going on against religious minorities in Pakistan. He had no right to deny any competent Hindu student of the country admission to the department, nor did he have the right to give undue grades based upon anyone's religious identity.   Unlike Mr. Chakrabarty, I would not overly praise Khundkar for an isolated decent human gesture. You support a hateful system, and then provide an isolated gesture of compassion; that does not earn much praise in my book. Khundkar was like a VVIP in Pakistan with no expressed support for Bangladesh that I am aware of. He was probably important enough to the pro-Pakistan thinkers. Thus, I doubt if he was a target of the Pakistani military, or if anyone was likely to probe into who was hiding in his house. I still would probably praise him mildly for saving an innocent human being in a most dreadful environment. I am also willing to learn, if I do not know enough, about his position toward the independence of Bangladesh.   'Inspiring and wonderful' to giving a First Class First position to a Hindu student; really! If we were to take unfair grading based upon prejudices as normal professorial behavior, then giving a First Class First position to a Hindu student would be 'inspiring and wonderful'. Is unfair grading based upon prejudices Mr. Chakrabarty's standard?   The First Class First position was not anyone's personal property to give away. A decent professor does not 'give grades', he/she grades all his/her students fairly. I would not praise any professor for 'giving grades'.   I share the frustration of Mr. Deeldar. I feel particularly frustrated about Bangladesh because of the recent trend of school teachers not teaching sincerely in the classroom. I feel so bad when a poor illiterate man from my village tells me that educating his children without private tutors is almost impossible!   I also agree with Dr. Roy and Mr. Deeldar on the points of brain drain and mediocrity breeding mediocrity.   Sukhamaya Bain   From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Saturday, June 2, 2012 9:58 AM Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] The allegation of opposition to the establishment of Dhaka University   Our memory fades. After 40 years it is hard to separate myths and facts from a mixture of these two. Let us assume that Dr. M. Khundakar, as the head of the department, was actually against producing chemists for India . Given the animosity between Pakistan and India , Khundakar was a great nationalist, but at the same time he was very poorly professional. Why did he take Hindu students at all? Once taken, how could he make a Hindu learn less and therby make him lesser of a chemist? During the Pakistani occupation period (March-Devcember 1971) he sheltered a brilliant Hindu student in his own home (Kamal-da might have been his classmate and hence may be able to reconfirm it). By doing this he risked his own life! Is it not intriguing that Khundakar was in the process of making a first-class-first Hindu chemist in the very Pakistan period in his own hands? Is it also not inspiring and wonderful? How a feat of professionalism be better? Is it not a wonderful piece of the untold history of our great liberation war and communal harmony as well?  By the by I should mention from whom I heard about Dr. M. Khundakar's alleged unwillingness to produce chemists for India . He was Ganapati Haldar. He was another brilliant student and was my roommate for one year in the dorm when we were students of Dhaka college. He came of a poor family. He got involved in a politics that made him dream of changing the society. He got killed in the hands of the antiliberation forces.   =================================           From: Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@yahoo.com> To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> Cc: "jnsr53@yahoo.com" <jnsr53@yahoo.com> Sent: Friday, June 1, 2012 9:02 PM Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] The allegation of opposition to the establishment of Dhaka University   Well, we deserve no better than mediocrity. The worms are already planted in the brains of students and teachers. Only few might be coming out right from the system with an open mind while the rest will paying some money to the middlemen and get some mundane jobs and will carry on living happily after. I think the battle is already lost. Good and fair teachers for Bangladeshis? Why and who cares? (Sorry for my sarcasm) -SD   "All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS   From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com Sent: Friday, June 1, 2012 8:01 PM Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] The allegation of opposition to the establishment of Dhaka University   Very well said, Deeldar!  Communality blurs one's vision to see the talent in the people belonging to a different community from theirs. This practice gives undue advantage to