Photo: TDM
INTERVIEW
Nadeem Qadir, editor of The Daily Messenger, recently interviewed retired Brigadier Rajendra Paul Singh, VSM, during his brief visit to Dhaka. The Indian Army officer fought in the 1971 Bangladesh war alongside Mukti Bahini.
The Indian Army from day-one backed Bangladesh’s Mukti Bahini fighting for freedom from the clutches of Pakistan, while Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after coming to power for the first time ever honoured those from the neighbouring country for their heroic role.
“After 1975 we were forgotten by the military regimes, but it was only after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina came to power that we were honoured,” Brigadier Rajendra Paul Sing, VSM, told the Daily Messenger.
He added “India’s involvement from the very start of the Bangladesh war was kept a guarded secret as we did not want the world to know for political reasons.” “Our involvement was made official at a later time as that is also how Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had wanted. There are many implications to such an involvement and both Bangabandhu and New Delhi did not want enemies to crush the revolt by going to international forums.”
He said those Indian army personnel who wanted to fight alongside Mukti Bahini were initially asked to sign a bond stating they were acting on their own and the army will not be responsible for their safety or their death.
Brigadier Paul, who trained and fought alongside the Mukti Bahini was a young captain in 1971, praised Bangabandhu’s eldest son, saying “I trained Sheikh Kamal as an instructor at the Officers Training Wing (OTW) of the Mukti Bahini and found him to be a very good soldier. He had tremendous leadership skills and was a fast learner.”
“I informed Sheikh Hasina about this and she became very emotional recollecting her time in exile in Delhi ... She used to threat the Pakistani soldiers when they tried to be rude with Bangabandhu’s family (kept captive in Dhaka) that she will call the Mukti Bahini,” he said with a laugh, meaning the occupying army was scared of the Bengali fighters.
Asked about his reaction to the news of 1975 assassination of Bangabandhu, the Brigadier replied. “It was a big shock and during my meeting with your prime minister we had a very emotional moment recollecting the savage killings and about Sheikh Kamal.” He was the first to be shot dead by coup leaders.
On the future of Bangladesh-India ties, the retired Indian army officer, 75, who is suffering from Parkinsons’s disease, said “we have a relation that has been nurtured over the past decades with our bonds written with blood and sacrifices in 1971 ... It will go grow more in the future and I want Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to return to power in the next general elections.”
Already, he added there has been lot of connectivity between the two South Asian neighbours over the past 15 years, but more was needed to be done, especially with the north-eastern India states which would boost trade. “For example, textile, much of which is imported from India, is one major sector to focus on strengthening economic ties.”
Told that a fruitful settlement of sharing of water of the Teesta River has been a major political challenge for Sheikh Hasina, Brigadier Paul replied “Yes, but as long as (west Bengal Chief Minister) Mamata (Banerjee) is there, I do not see anything positive to happen. In another two to three years, she will go and there will be some sanity as the central government is positive about the issue.”
“However, I feel that all the 54 common rivers must be linked to avoid wasting water on one hand and on the other it will benefit people on both sides of the border as it would ensure supply of required amount of water as well as help save water,” he said adding that
“We will prosper together and I feel so good when I think of your 50 years of independence.” He said adding that “what Sheikh Hasina has done is incomparable.”
Asked about the Bangladesh genocide, the military man condemned the 1971 genocide by the Pakistani army saying “Islamabad should apologise to you for the senseless killings and rape of Bengalis... Many Pakistanis also want that their government should apologise which you can see in comments in the social network.”
But he added quickly “I feel happy when I see Bangladesh is doing great compared to Pakistan ... especially on the economic front.”
Brigadier Singh, a columnist, has authored a number of books including “From East Pakistan To Bangladesh: Recollections of 1971 Liberation War” with his son, Hitesh Singh, as the co-author. He gifted this book to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
TDM/MI
