Police opened fire after 3:30 p.m.

Ahmed Rafiq is a language activist, a key organizer in the forefront of the great language movement. He is a researcher on Rabindranath Tagore. Simultaneously, he has gained fame as an essayist, poet, and columnist. He was actively involved in politics during his student life, which made his educational life turbulent. Ahmad Rafiq has edited multiple literature and science journals. He has been involved in various social and cultural movements with a sensitive heart. The number of his published books exceeds 30. Jagannath University's Assistant Professor Rahat Minhaz discusses with Ahmad Rafiq various events and trends related to the language movement at the author Iskatan's residence. In a brief conversation, he explores various unknown aspects of the Language Movement of 1952.

Rahat Minhaz: How was the morning of February 21st?
Ahmed Rafiq: It was the third week of February. The cold had intensified. It was a gloomy morning. However, there was an atmosphere of excitement throughout the campus. Students had already gathered at the university before the sunrise. Apart from Dhaka University, there was a tense atmosphere of student activism in various educational institutions. Many student leaders had arrived at the Madhur Canteen long before. Discussions and debates were ongoing regarding the breaking of Section 144. In front of the Arts Building, heavily armed police were stationed, some holding batons, others firearms. Jeeps and trucks were parked nearby. It was said that Nurul Amin (former Chief Minister of East Bengal) had fully prepared the police force.

Rahat Minhaz: The most significant event or phase of the Language Movement was the student assembly at Amtala on the morning of February 21. From where it was decided to break Article 144. What can you tell us about that meeting?
Ahmed Rafiq: As far as I remember, the student assembly at Amtala began around 11 o'clock in the morning. Shamsul Haq of the Sharbodolio Shangram Porishad spoke against breaking Section 144 there. However, the students rejected it. He was compelled to stop his speech midway. After that, Abdul Matin, the convener of the Language Action Committee of Dhaka University, expressed his opinion in favor of breaking Section 144. With calm and steady reasoning, he convinced small groups of around 10 people to plan to break Section 144. Their destination was the assembly hall. Then, through the speech of Gaziul Haque, the president of the Sharbodolio Shangram Porishad, the meeting concluded. The final decision was made to break Section 144. The Arts Building echoed with slogans demanding the recognition of Bengali as the state language and the release of political prisoners.

Rahat Minhaz: What happened next? That is, the firing started towards the afternoon. What happened during this time in between?
Ahmed Rafiq: As the meeting was ending, tension began to escalate all around. Students formed groups of ten and remained outside the Arts Building. At this time, the police started firing tear gas canisters extensively. Along with tear gas, the heavily armed police also resorted to baton charges.
Several people were arrested and taken away in vehicles. Among them, prominent figures included Habibur Rahman Shelly [a former Chief Advisor of the Caretaker Government, Chief Justice], Abdus Samad, Anwarul Haque Khan, and several others. Several female students also participated in the procession to break Section 144. Among them, quite a few were injured by police baton charges, but they were not arrested. At this time, tension spread mainly from Amtala to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Rahat Minhaz: Who participated in this movement besides students? It is heard that many ordinary people, who were not students, also joined the movement that day?
Ahmed Rafiq: Actually, everyone had, and still has, affection for the language. That's why everyone supported this movement of the students. When there were clashes between students and police in the university, people from various professions were involved in this movement. For example, employees from the third and fourth floors of the secretariat, workers from shops and restaurants, and ordinary people. Although the people of old Dhaka had once nurtured a negative attitude towards the Language Movement, on this day, we saw many ordinary people from old Dhaka joining the movement on the streets.

Rahat Minhaz: Where and when did the first shots occur on that day? Who was killed or injured?
Ahmed Rafiq: As far as I can remember, on that day, between 3:00 to 3:30 in the afternoon, at some point, the police opened fire. The students were actually trying to come out through the main door of the Arts Building. But the police had barricaded them using tear gas and baton charges. However, due to the gradual escalation of brickbatting from both sides, the situation deteriorated. At one point, the police opened fire. According to the government press note, the police opened fire at 3:20 p.m. The police fired three rounds of bullets within 20 minutes, totaling 20 rounds. The first casualty from police gunfire was Barkat, who fell to the ground in a pool of blood. Barkat was a final-year student of MA class. Additionally, many others, including Salam, were shot. Several among them succumbed to their injuries later in the hospital.

Rahat Minhaz: How was the reaction to the killing of students by bullets?
Ahmed Rafiq: It was an unprecedented situation. As soon as the news of students being killed by bullets spread, the entire city of Dhaka erupted in protest almost instantly. At that moment, it was not just a student movement anymore; the entire city of Dhaka became a city of protest. Witnessing the brutality of the police force under Nurul Amin's government, the entire nation became enraged. Breaking through Section 144 and defying all the laws of the government, thousands upon thousands marched on the streets. Everyone was outraged in protest against the killing of students. On the day of the student killings, unrest also erupted in the parliament building. Maulana Abdur Rashid and several other leaders expressed their condemnation of this incident, along with discussions on the issue. Although the proposal to adjourn the parliamentary session was not accepted, Dhirendranath Datta, Manoranjan Dhar, Khairat Hossain, Anwara Khatun, and others left the building after the incident. The reaction following the police shootings on that day remained unabated on February 22nd as well. On that day too, several people were killed by police gunfire.

Rahat Minhaz: A commission was formed to investigate the incidents of shooting and killing of protesting students claiming language rights. What did the commission report say?
Ahmed Rafiq: After this incident, the Pakistani government formed a commission with Judge Ellis. This commission, known as the Ellis Commission, released a report that was biased and dishonest. It was full of falsehoods. It was very surprising that a judge could give such a biased report at that time. He stated in his report that on that day, the students were unruly, rioters. And the 27 rounds of bullets fired by the police were entirely in self-defense. Moreover, the police fired the bullets from outside the college compound. Meaning, the police fired the bullets for their own protection. However, people of East Bengal disavowed judge Ellis’s report. In addition to that, before preparing that report, he took interviews of several students, who said that there was no incident that warranted firing bullets that day. Yet, the police fired bullets. None of these aspects were included in Judge Ellis's report.

Rahat Minhaz: Some Bengalis played a somewhat detrimental role in the language movement, especially through activities such as firing bullets on February 21st and subsequent events. How would you evaluate their role and contributions?
Ahmed Rafiq: Despite being Bengali, the person who played the most detrimental role in the language movement was Nurul Amin. In 1952, he was the Chief Minister of East Bengal. Even though it was not under his direct orders, it was with his approval that bullets were fired on the students. Even after the students were killed by bullets, in a radio speech, he said that the police were compelled to fire bullets. And if the police had not performed their duty that day, they would have been considered criminals by future generations. Apart from them, Bengali SP Mohammad Idris and DIG Obaidul Haq also played extremely influential roles. As a Bengali, their stance against the Bengali language movement created intense hatred among all.