Sriti o Chetona Museum

  Chika Masjid is one of the most famous monuments from the medieval times. It is located in Gaur, Malda (Gauda); which was once the administrative centre or capital of Shashanka's Banga/Vanga. As per the ASI and other history scholars, the structure of the masjid is built out of carved stones taken from a demolished Hindu Temple and enamelled bricks in cornices.  It is also a mausoleum. It was also used as a prison or a dungeon by Sultan Hossain Shah (1493-1519 CE). The word 'Chika' means bats (chamchika). The monument was most likely an ancient and abandoned Hindu temple which had become house to many bats before it was cleaned out and turned in to a Masjid. Images of Hindu idols on the stonework of doors and lintels are still clearly visible and the ancient Hindu style ornate carvings on the walls are further proof that this was indeed a temple. Furthermor, the masjid also bears traces of traditional mandir architecture of the classical times. Many dilapidated Hindu idol

  Ekattorer Juddhoshishu: Kotota Bhalobasay Kotota Obohelay  Book by Sajid Hossain (literally 'War Children of Seventy One: How Loved, How Forsaken')

  Jogesh Chandra Ghosh (1887 – 4 April, 1971) was a scholar, Ayurveda physician, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He pioneered the use of Ayurveda in British India and founded the Ayurvedic drugstore Sadhana Aushadhalaya. In the genocide during the Bangladesh Liberation War, he was shot to death by the Pakistan Army. After retirement, Ghosh stayed in his Dhaka residence and oversaw the activities of Sadhana Aushadhalaya, located at 21 Dinanath Sen Road in Gandaria. During the 1964 East Pakistan genocide, he sheltered the Bengali Hindus from the neighborhood in the factory of Sadhana Aushadhalaya. In 1971, when the Pakistan Army launched Operation Searchlight and began killing the civilian population in Dhaka, Ghosh too was targeted. All the Hindu staff of Sadhana Aushadhalaya, fearing for life crossed the border and took refuge in India. At the age of 84 and invalid, Ghosh refused to move. He stayed at his establishment with two guards. On 4 April, the Pakistan Army led by a Peace Comm

  Muktijuddhe Bharater Obodaan  Book by Salam Azad  (Literally, 'India’s Contribution in the Liberation War') Ankur Prakashani, 2012

  Hindu Somproday Keno Deshtyag Korche (literally 'Why are Hindus Leaving the Country') Book by Salam Azad 

  Abhay Ashram before violence.  Abhay Ashram after being torched during the widespread violence in 1990. 

  Hundreds of Hindu murthys were destroyed and mandirs desecrated. 

  Thousands of Hindu homes were burnt in Bangladesh based on the rumor that Babri Masjid has been demolished. 

  The Dhakeswari Mandir (National temple of Bangladesh) as captured in 1904-05. 

  Remains of a family home in southeastern Bangladesh.  In 1990, a series of attacks against the Bengali Hindus in Bangladesh occurred in late October and early November, following a rumour that the Babri mosque in Ayodhya in India had been demolished. The attacks on the Hindus began on 30 October and continued till 2 November. Background In 1988, President Hussain Muhammad Ershad, had amended the Constitution of Bangladesh to declare Islam as the state religion of Bangladesh. Following the declaration, the persecution of Hindu and other minorities intensified in Bangladesh. In the fall of 1989, an anti-Hindu pogrom took place in Bangladesh, marked by widespread destruction of Hindu temples and violence against the Hindus, following the laying of foundation of Ram temple in faraway Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, India. The relations between the majority Muslims and minority Hindus remained tense and as the events unfolded in Ayodhya. Attacks On 29 October, the Jamaat-e-Islami-funded newspap

  The 1989 Bangladesh pogroms were a series of attacks against the Bengali Hindus in October - November, apparently as a reaction to the laying of the foundation of Ram temple adjacent to Demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in India. In the pogroms, thousands of Hindu homes and businesses were destroyed. More than 400 Hindu temples were destroyed. The stone was laid (Bhumi Pujan) on the 9th of November, but the declaration of it was used as an excuse to kill Hindus.  The very first incident took place on the 6th of September, when a Hindu woman named Brajabala Debnath and her children were brutally murdered by a Muslim mob at the village of Nidarabad under Harashpur Union of Nasirnagar Upazila in Brahmanbaria District. Then on the 30th October, Hindu shops were looted and set on fire in Chittagong, in spite of a curfew. Hindu men and women were attacked and molested. On the 10th of November, a Muslim mob shouting anti-Hindu slogans took out a procession in Khulna. Hindu temples w

  Sukharanjan Samaddar (15 Jan, 1938 – 14 Apr, 1971) was a university professor, educationalist, and martyred freedom fighter of the Bangladesh Liberation War.  As per the statement provided by Sukharanjan's wife, the Pakistan army entered Rajshahi University on the 13th of April, 1971. An injured soldier of East Pakistan Rifles came to his house at midnight. He provided first aid to the soldier who left before daybreak. The next day the Pakistan(West) Army came to his house looking for the injured EPR soldier. The Pakistan army was accompanied by Motiur Rahman, a Bihari and the head of the psychology department, and Ahmed Muhammad Patel, a teacher of geography in the University. The Pakistan army interrogated him and was about to leave when Motiur informed them that Samaddar was a Hindu, at which point Pakistan army picked up Samaddar. Samaddar's family was told that he was with the Vice-Chancellor Syed Sajjad Hussain and there was nothing to worry about. The whereabouts of Sa

  Ranadaprasad Shaha(also Ranadaprasad Saha; 15 Nov,1896 – 7 May, 1971) was a Bangladeshi businessman and philanthropist who founded educational institutes like Bharateswari Homes, Kumudini College and Debendra College. He was one of the prominent intellectuals of the nation.  Shaha along with his 26-year-old son Bhavani Prasad, was taken from his home on the 7th of May, 1971 by the Pakistani Army and was never seen again.  The death of Ranadaprasad Saha remained a mystery as his body was never found, and neither was his son's.

  Shanku Samajdar, a 12 year old Hindu boy, became the first martyr (Shaheed) of the Bangladesh Liberation War byy sacrificing life on the 3rd of March, 1971 while taking part in the massive non-cooperation movement rally in Rangpur city. The supreme sacrifice of this Hindu boy, a class six student, triggered rage among the mass and the movement became more intense and organised.   It all began with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman calling for a nationwide non-cooperation and strike on the 2nd and 3rd of March, 1971. As per the call of Mujibur Rahman, Bengalis of all religions began an unprecedented non- cooperation movement against the Pakistani regime and a curfew was declared on the 3rd of March. On the 3rd of March, people from all walks of the society including youths, students, farmers and labourers, men and women, Hindus and Muslims of Rangpur organized a huge procession that began from Katchari Bazar point, defying the curfew. At about 9 am in the morning, Shanku along with elder brother

  Jyotirmoy Guhathakurta (10 July 1920 – 30 March 1971) was a Bengali educator and humanist of former East Pakistan, now Bangladesh. He was one of the Hindu Bengali intellectuals killed by the Pakistan Army during the 1971 Dhaka University massacre. (He was shot on the night of 25 March 1971, he finally succumbed to his injuries on the 30th of March, unlike G.C.Dev who was killed on the spot on the 25th/26th.)  After midnight 25 March 1971, Professor Jotirmoy Guhathakurta was shot in the dark by the Pakistani Army just outside the University building where he lived while at the same time another professor A.N.M. Maniruzzaman and three members of Maniruzzaman's family was shot in the landing of the stairwell of the same building. On the 27th of March, he was taken to the hospital which was almost deserted except for the wounded, with a handful of doctors to attend. After two days with hardly a regular medical attendant, he died due to severe loss of blood. [Source: Akhtar, Shameem (

 

  Govinda Chandra Dev (1 Feb, 1907 – 26 Mar, 1971), known as Dr. G. C. Dev, was a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dhaka. He was assassinated on the night of 25th March, the day Operation Searchlight began. (Technically 26th March, as it was past 12am) Dev was assassinated along with the husband of his adopted daughter by the Pakistan army who were involved in 1971 Dhaka University massacre on the night of 25 March.  At the time, Dev was residing in a university quarter near Jagannath Hall with his adopted daughter Begum Rokeya Sultana and her husband Mohammad Ali. At around 11 p.m., the residents of the house were awakened by the sound of gunfire as the army raided the campus. As Rokeya remarked later, bullets were hitting the house like a hailstorm. The family took shelter in a small room and kept awake the whole night. On the morning of 26th, a group of Pakistani soldiers came to the door. They started banging on the door as they shouted in Urdu, "You son of an infi

 

  Dhirendranath Datta (2 November, 1886 – 29 March,1971) was a lawyer by profession and a politician. He was the first person to demand for Bengali language as state language.  Datta was arrested at his Comilla house on 29 March 1971, and taken with his son, Dilip Kumar Datta, to Moynamoti Cantonment and tortured to death by the Pakistani army. 

  Martyred Intellectuals Memorial (বুদ্ধিজীবী স্মৃতি সৌধ) at Rayerbazar, Dhaka.  This memorial is dedicated to Bengali intellectuals who were killed in the 1971 East Pakistan Genocide. This includes Govinda Chandra Dev (the first Bhasha Shahid of 1971, a Philosophy Professor at DU), Dhirendranath Datta (Lawyer and Politcian), Munier Chowdhury (Litterateur, dramatist, Professor at DU), Mufazzal Haider Chaudhury (Litterateur, Professor at DU), Shahidullah Kaisar (journalist), Nizamuddin Ahmed (Reporter), Selina Parvin (reporter), Altaf Mahmud (lyricist and musician), Sukhranjan Somaddar (Professor of Sanskrit, RU), Mir Abdul Quaiyum (Professor of Psychology, RU), Ranadaprasad Saha (philanthropist), Lt. Col. Moazzem Hossain (ex-soldier), Mamun Mahmood (Police Officer), and many others. 

  Bhasha Smritistambha (Language Monument), located at Deshapriya Park, Kolkata. This memorial is dedicated to the Bengali language authors and the martyrs of language movements Silchar(Barak Valley Bengali Movement) and Dhaka language movement. 

  Memorial Plaque of Language Martyrs at Silchar. 

  Language Martyr's Memorial at Silchar railway station.  Silchar railway station is described as Bhasa Shahid Station.

  Procession in Silchar on 20th May 1961 in memory of the deceased martyrs in defiance of the curfew. The participants were carrying the bodies of the martyrs in protest of the killings on the 19th. 

  Assam police resort to lathicharge on the satyagrahis at the Tarapur railway station (now, Silchar railway station) on 19th May, 1961. 15 Bengalis (Hindu) were killed by Assamese police.

  Women defying the section 144 curfew and marching on 21 February, 1952. 

  A procession march at Nawabpur Road, Dhaka. 4th of February, 1952. 

  Muhammad Ali Jinnah declaring on 21 March 1948 that the state language of Pakistan is going to be Urdu. This lead to widespread discontent among Bengalis of all religions. 

  Dhaka University students make a gathering 22nd February, 1952. 

  Student meeting at Dhaka University February, 1952. 

  The Language Movement Procession march in Dhaka on 21 February 1952. 

  President of Pakistan Yahya Khan with United States President Richard Nixon, 1970.

  Human remains and war material from 1971 at the Liberation War Museum, Bangladesh. 

  The Jallad Khana memorial at one of the killing fields in Mirpur is maintained by the Liberation War museum. 

  Female students of Dhaka (Dacca) university marching on Language Movement Day, 21 February 1953. 

  "allah alruhmun alrahim!" Rayerbazar killing field. Bodies of Bengali nationalists and intellectuals, among whom majority were Hindus... (Image courtesy: Rashid Talukdar, 1971)

  Home away from home... Homeless and persecuted Bengali Hindus arrive at Kolkata seeking refuge after 1964 Khulna massacre. 

  Seeking Refuge... Homeless, persecuted Hindu refugees from East Pakistan leaving for Kolkata, India. 

  Crazed Muslim mob attacking Dhakeswari Mandir in Dhaka. 1964. 

  Red marks the site of railway massacres during 1950 East Pakistan pogrom. 

  Swami Abhayananda of Bharat Sevashram Sangha distributing relief at Dalalbazar under the Lakshmipur police station in Noakhali in 1946

  Freedom Fighter Lalmohan Sen was killed trying to save the Hindus of Sandwip from a Muslim mob.  Like a pack of wild dogs they hunted the lion... 'According to eyewitnesses, the attackers used petrol to set the houses on fire. In the remote island of Sandwip, which had no motor cars, petrol was imported from the mainland to set the houses on fire. According to Rakesh Batabyal, the use of petrol and kerosene indicates the premeditated and organised nature of the attacks.' - [Sengupta, Subhodh Chandra; Basu, Anjali, eds. (January 2002). "লালমোহন সেন" [Lalmohan Sen]. Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan (Bibliographical Dictionary) (in Bengali). Volume 1 (4th ed.). Kolkata: Shishu Sahitya Samsad. p. 501. ISBN 8185626650.]

  A destroyed homestead in Chandpur. On 12 October, the residence of Chittaranjan Dutta Raychaudhuri, at Shayestaganj, under the Raipur police station, was attacked by a Muslim mob. Kasem's private army attacked the Das family of Gopairbag, near Sompara market, under the Ramganj police station. The Das family were Kasem's immediate neighbour. The Chaudhuri family of Noakhola village under the Ramganj police station were also attacked by a Muslim mob. The attackers resorted to murder, loot and arson. Another Muslim mob attacked the residence of Yashoda Pal and Bharat Bhuiyan at Gobindapur under Ramganj police station. Between Amishapara and Satgharia the residences of the Bhaumiks and the Pals were totally destroyed by fire. In Nandigram, Golam Sarwar's private army burnt the Nag residence, the post office and the school founded by Ramanikanta Nag. The Hindus from the nearby areas had taken shelter in the Nag residence and initially the police protected them, repulsing the f

  Rajendralal Roychowdhury's severed head was presented to Golam Sarwar on a platter and his two daughters were given to two of his trusted generals.  Rajendralal was the president of the Noakhali Bar Association and the Noakhali District Hindu Mahasabha. It is heard that he fought almost singlehandedly against hundreds of armed and crazed Muslim hooligans. Rajendralal went down like a veer, fighting till the end. 

  House of the Devil:  Diara Sharif of Shyampur, the residence of Ghulam Sarwar Husseini.  In 1937, Gholam Sarwar Husseini, the scion of a Muslim Pir family, was elected to the Bengal Legislative Assembly on a Krishak Praja Party ticket. However, in the 1946 elections, he lost to a Muslim League candidate. Sarwar's family happened to be the hereditary khadims at the Diara Sharif in Shyampur. After the Direct Action Day riots in Kolkata, Husseini began to deliver provocative speeches, making up false narratives and inciting the Muslim masses to take 'revenge' for the Kolkata riots (which was started by Muslims and Hindus were initially mute spectators and victims. Only after 3 days of non-stop looting, killing, rapes and destruction did the Hindus fight back in self-defence).  In some places, Muslims began to boycott Hindu shops. In the Ramganj and Begumganj police station areas, the Muslim boatmen refused to ferry Hindu passengers. In the first week of September, Muslims lo

  The destroyed house of Rajendralal Roychowdhury. On 11 October, 1946, the private army of Gholam Sarwar, known as the 'Miyar Fauz'(literally Miyan's Army), attacked the residence of Rajendralal Roychowdhury, the president of the Noakhali Bar Association and the Noakhali District Hindu Mahasabha. At that time Swami Tryambakananda of Bharat Sevashram Sangha was staying at their house as a guest. Roychowdhury fended off the mob from his terrace with his rifle for the entire day. At nightfall, when they retreated, he sent the swami and his family members to safety. The next day the mob attacked again. Rajendralal Roychowdhury's severed head was presented to Golam Sarwar on a platter and his two daughters were given to two of his trusted generals. According to Sucheta Kriplani, Rajendralal Roychowdhury had followed the footsteps of Shivaji and Guru Gobind Singh and became a martyr, defending his faith and family honour. Acharya Kripalani, a staunch believer in non-violence

  M.K.Gandhi's post-pogrom march in Noakhali 1946. (Note: The 1946 Noakhali Pogrom was a preplanned ethnic cleansing program, it is wrongly termed as riot. Riots witness violence from both sides. Noakhali 1946 was a one sided attack on unsuspecting Hindus.)

  Surabala Majumdar, the wife of Dr. Pratap Chandra Majumdar, who was killed in 1946 Noakhali Pogrom.  (Note: The 1946 Noakhali Pogrom was a preplanned ethnic cleansing program, it is wrongly termed as riot. Riots witness violence from both sides. Noakhali 1946 was a one sided attack on unsuspecting Hindus.)