Preserve Kolkata building that housed Mujibnagar govt

Officials of the Mujibnagar government on Saturday demanded that the government take necessary steps to preserve the building on Theatre Road in Kolkata, which housed the wartime government in 1971.

The government that took oath on April 17, 1971 was the first government of Bangladesh and not a provisional one, they said.

Pro-liberation war organisation Muktijuddho 71 organised the discussion titled "Mujibnagar Government, First Government of Bangladesh: Formation and Operation History."

Mujibnagar government official Akbar Ali Khan, said that he visited Kolkata five years ago and found a Ram Krishna Mission office at the building that housed wartime government.

"I think in these five years, situation of the building has changed further…Bangladesh and India have very good relationship, we need to preserve the Mujibnagar government's memory. I think if we neglect the matter we will not be able to preserve this significant memory of our Liberation War," said Akbar Ali Khan, who later become Cabinet Secretary and acted as former adviser to a caretaker government.

Barrister M Amir-Ul Islam, special aide and an adviser to the Mujibnagar Government's Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmad said that Akbar Ali Khan made an accurate observation regarding preserving of the Mujibnagar government's office in Kolkata.

Post-independence, there were informal discussions on Bangladesh government officially contacting India. Then the Indian government would respond positively on building a museum at Theatre Road, he said.

"But it never happened," added Amir, who drafted the Proclamation of Independence and was an organiser of oath-taking ceremony on April 17, 1971.

Amir, Akbar, and another Mujibnagar government official Kamal Siddiqui all said that the Bangladesh liberation war was truly a people's war in which common people played a significant role.

Mujibnagar government employee Waliul Islam also reminisced his wartime experience at the programme that was moderated by  economist Ahmad Ahsan.