Badruddin Umar unparalleled in many ways: Serajul Islam Choudhury

Badruddin Umar was an extraordinary man, in many ways he was unparalleled. He too was attacked by the human frailties that exist in society, but they could not divert him. He was not afraid, he did not panic even under state terror. The lure of honour and awards never touched him.

Professor Serajul Islam Choudhury came up with the observation while addressing a commemorating event, titled "Comrade Badruddin Umar Memorial Meeting”, on Friday last at Abdul Karim Sahityabisharad Auditorium of the Bangla Academy in the capital.

He said, “After the establishment of Bangladesh, in the situation that arose then, we also saw how fearlessly Badruddin Umar wrote. He had no illusions. The illusion of honour, of fame, of awards – none of these ever touched him. We know society gives awards, the state gives awards – but Badruddin Umar never accepted any award. We also see that many fall away from the uncertain life of struggle, but Badruddin Umar never deviated from that struggle.”

Badruddin Umar died on 7 September at the age of 94.

Paying tribute to the country's one of the most prominent intellectuals, speakers at the commemorating meeting said that he was such a towering figure that even countless words cannot fully define him. Writer, teacher, intellectual, politician, Marxist-Leninist theoretician, leftist leader – none of these terms alone can capture his personality.

The meeting, organised by the National Committee on Marxist-Leninist Communist Revolutionary Badruddin Umar Memorial Meeting, was conducted by Faizul Hakim, convenor of the committee and secretary of the Jatiya Mukti Council.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, economist Mahbub Ullah, BASAD chief adviser Khalequzzaman Bhuiyan, Professor Anu Muhammad, Nagorik Oikya president Mahmudur Rahman Manna, Ganasamhati Andolan chief coordinator Zonayed Saki, Revolutionary Workers Party president Saiful Haque and leaders of various political, social and cultural organisations also addressed the commemorating ceremony. In addition, Comrade Badruddin Umar’s youngest daughter, Sara Akhtar Banu, gave an emotional speech in memory of her father.

The programme began with one minute of silence paying tribute to Badruddin Umar. This was followed by a collective rendering of the communist international song “Jago Jago Jago Sarbahara”. Alongside the discussions there was also poetry recitation and screening of a documentary film, titled "Chirantan Dipshikha", on Umar’s life and work. The auditorium was full to the brim with teachers, intellectuals, politicians, writers, journalists, students and people from different walks of life. Countless listeners, unable to find a seat, stood at the back to hear the speeches.

Speaking about Badruddin Umar, BNP Secretary General Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, “I did not have much opportunity to interact with Comrade Badruddin Umar. But I had been his admirer for a long time, from the time I began reading his writings. Overall, he occupied a very high place in my esteem, in a place of respect. Men like Badruddin Umar are not born all the time. The ideals they hold, the struggles they undertake, he carried those until the last day of his life. He never compromised. Those of us engaged in politics today feel small compared to him, because he never compromised. I do not know exactly how much the new generation has gained or is gaining from Badruddin Umar. But one message that comes through very strongly from his words is – organisation, organisation, organisation. I think revolutions succeed only when there is organisation. The root cause of today’s despair is the lack of organisation. Those who want to succeed in revolution must build organisation and go to the people, as Badruddin Umar urged.”

Professor Anu Muhammad recalled his long-time experience of working with Badruddin Umar. He said, “My interest in Badruddin Umar began when I was a school student. At home we subscribed to a newspaper where I first read that a writer had refused the Bangla Academy award. That was in 1973. You all know the turbulence of those times. Later, when I entered college, there was a meeting at Natmandal of Dhaka University where Badruddin Umar was present. His name had stayed with me from that newspaper report. I wanted to understand politics, so from then on I read the monthly periodical "Sanskriti" which was edited by him and first published in 1973. The periodical was shut down along with many newspapers in 1974. In 1976 I first came into contact with Lekhak Shibir, with which Badruddin Umar was involved. In 1978 I first met him in person, when he went into hiding due to political repression. From that time on, I got associated with his political ideology. For many years, we worked together, carrying out many political programmes side by side. Through various organisational activities and theoretical discussions with him, I was greatly enriched. Sanskriti resumed publication in 1981, and until 1999, I was its executive editor. He reorganised the ‘Bangladesh Lekhak Shibir’, he was its president and I was its general secretary. I was with him in many political activities. So Badruddin Umar was at once my teacher and my comrade. His writings cover several aspects – one is historical inquiry. He wrote Bangladesh’s history in a new way, freeing it from errors and distortions. If today’s people want to read and learn the history of the Language Movement, the mass upsurge of 1969, the Liberation War of 1971, the peasant and workers’ struggles of the sixties, the role of imperialism, they must turn to Badruddin Umar.”

Nagorik Oikya President Mahmudur Rahman Manna said, “From student life I was a reader of Badruddin Umar’s writings. When I read Purba Banglar Bhasha Andolan o Totkalin Rajniti, it seemed to me that he was a truly exceptional scholar. Later I read many more of his works. Even then I felt he was a man of very high learning. I did not belong to the tradition of politics that Badruddin Umar represented. In our tradition of politics there was no cultivation of knowledge. The older I grew, the more I understood that politics devoid of knowledge cannot serve society’s welfare. Our politicians are famous as orators, but immature in discussion. Not all, of course, but generally it can be said that knowledge was absent in politics. Badruddin Umar was in this regard a shining beacon. He taught everyone that without study and learning, nothing else can lead to good politics. I feel that in my own development and growth, Badruddin Umar has had a great contribution.”

On behalf of the family, Badruddin Umar’s daughter Sara Akhtar Banu spoke at the memorial. Recalling her father, she said, “Towards the end when he became very ill, he was losing hope. His kidneys were failing. We three siblings nursed him. We thought he would recover. But on 7 September he left us.”

In a grieving voice she also shared family memories – how from her childhood he taught them to be good human beings, how he corrected them if they did wrong, and encouraged them to read good books. She spoke of how after her father resigned from his job the family fell into uncertainty, and how their mother held the household together. Through this, another uncompromising side of Badruddin Umar can be understood.

Around 22 speakers spoke at the event. Among them were former secretary Syed Margub Morshed, Revolutionary Communist Party secretary Saiful Haque, journalist Abu Sayeed Khan, Bangladesh JASAD leader Akhtar Hossain, Krishak o Majdur Sangathan president Sajib Roy, Jatiya Mukti Council leader Mujibur Rahman, National Poetry Council president poet Mohan Raihan, Ganaodhikar Parishad secretary Rashed Khan, Bangla Research publisher Afzalul Bashar, BASAD Marxist leader Masud Rana, Bangladesh Lekhak Shibir president Kazi Iqbal and others. Separate condolence messages sent by West Bengal writer Ark Bhaduuri, Diamond Harbour University professor Anindita Ghosh and the editorial board of Onik were read out. Poet Hasan Fakhri recited dedicated poems.

In the three-hour programme, one aspect was very striking – the audience listened attentively to all the speakers while pindrop silence prevailed in the auditorium. This showed the depth of people’s respect for Badruddin Umar. Many speakers also mentioned that this is not an occasion for grief but for a new strength that will inspire them from today. For men like Badruddin Umar, there is no death. Rather, he will live forever through his work.