Language Movement
Encyclopedia
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
(then known as East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
), advocating the recognition of the Bengali language
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
as an official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. Such recognition would allow Bengali to be used in government affairs.
When the state of Pakistan was formed
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
in 1947, its two regions, East Pakistan (also called East Bengal
East Bengal
East Bengal was the name used during two periods in the 20th century for a territory that roughly corresponded to the modern state of Bangladesh. Both instances involved a violent partition of Bengal....
) and West Pakistan
West Pakistan
West Pakistan , common name West-Pakistan , in the period between its establishment on 22 November 1955 to disintegration on December 16, 1971. This period, during which, Pakistan was divided, ended when East-Pakistan was disintegrated and succeeded to become which is now what is known as Bangladesh...
, were split along cultural, geographical, and linguistic lines. In 1948, the Government of Pakistan
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...
ordained Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
as the sole national language, sparking extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan. Facing rising sectarian tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed public meetings and rallies. The students of the University of Dhaka
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka is the oldest university in Bangladesh. It is a multi-disciplinary research university and is among the top universities in the region. Established on July 21, 1921, as per the Government of India Act, 1920, it was modelled on the Universities in England and soon gained...
and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on 21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police killed student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest led by the Awami Muslim League
Awami Muslim League
Awami Muslim League Pakistan is a Pakistani political party formed in June 2008 by Shaikh Rasheed Ahmad.- NA-55 :This is a national assembly seat fought by Sheikh Rashid Ahmed of the Awami Muslim League Pakistan on February 24, 2010 but lost by a margin of more than 28000 votes...
, later renamed the Awami League. After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted official status to the Bengali language in 1956. In 2000, UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
declared 21 February International Mother Language Day
International Mother Language Day
International Mother Language Day is an observance held annually on 21 February worldwide to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. It was first announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999...
for the whole world to celebrate, in tribute to the Language Movement and the ethno-linguistic rights of people around the world.
The Language Movement catalysed the assertion of Bengali national identity in Pakistan, and became a forerunner to Bengali nationalist movements, including the 6-point movement and subsequently the Bangladesh Liberation War
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
in 1971. In Bangladesh, 21 February is observed as Language Movement Day
Language Movement Day
Language Movement Day or Language Revolution Day , which is also referred to as Language Martyrs' Day or Martyrs' Day , is a national day of Bangladesh to commemorate protests and sacrifices to protect Bangla as a national language during Bengali Language Movement of 1952.-Background:In 1952,...
, a national holiday. The Shaheed Minar
Shaheed Minar
The Shaheed Minar is a national monument in Dhaka, Bangladesh, established to commemorate those killed during the Language Movement demonstrations of 1952....
monument was constructed near Dhaka Medical College in memory of the movement and its victims.
Background
The present nations of Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of undivided India during the British colonial ruleBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
. From the mid-19th century, the Urdu language had been promoted as the lingua franca
Lingua franca
A lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
of Indian Muslims
Islam in India
Islam is the second-most practiced religion in the Republic of India after Hinduism, with more than 13.4% of the country's population ....
by political and religious leaders such as Sir Khwaja Salimullah
Khwaja Salimullah
Nawab Sir Khwaja Salimullah Bahadur, GCIE, KCSI was the fourth Nawab of Dhaka and one of the leading Muslim politicians during the British Raj. It was he who, in the wake of partition of Bengal in 1905, made correspondance and discussed with Nawab Muhsinul Mulk at Aligarh over the issue of...
, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Nawab Viqar-ul-Mulk
Nawab Viqar-ul-Mulk
Nawab Waqar-ul-Mulk Kamboh or Nawab Waqar-ul-Mulq Maulvi also known as Mushtaq Hussain a Muslim born in the Meerut in 24 March 1841 was a Muslim politician and one of the founders of All India Muslim League.-Early life:...
and Maulvi Abdul Haq
Maulvi Abdul Haq
Maulvi Abdul Haq was a scholar and linguist, who is also regarded as Baba-e-Urdu . He was a champion of the Urdu language and the demand for it to be made the national language of Pakistan.-Early life:...
. Urdu is an Indo-Aryan language
Indo-Aryan languages
The Indo-Aryan languages constitutes a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family...
of the Indo-Iranian branch
Indo-Iranian languages
The Indo-Iranian language group constitutes the easternmost extant branch of the Indo-European family of languages. It consists of three language groups: the Indo-Aryan, Iranian and Nuristani...
, belonging to the Indo-European
Indo-European languages
The Indo-European languages are a family of several hundred related languages and dialects, including most major current languages of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and South Asia and also historically predominant in Anatolia...
family of languages. It developed under Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
and Turkic
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
influence on apabhramsha
Apabhramsha
Apabhraṃśa is a term used by Sanskrit grammarians since Patañjali to refer to dialects that deviate from the norm of Sanskrit grammar. The term in Sanskrit literally means "corrupt" or "non-grammatical language". It is used as a cover term for the dialects forming the transition between the late...
s (last linguistic stage of the medieval Indian Aryan language Pali
Páli
- External links :* *...
-Prakrit
Prakrit
Prakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the literary and religious...
) in South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
during the Delhi Sultanate
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is a term used to cover five short-lived, Delhi based kingdoms or sultanates, of Turkic origin in medieval India. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty...
and Mughal Empire
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
. With its Perso-Arabic script
Perso-Arabic script
The Persian or Perso-Arabic alphabet is a writing system based on the Arabic script. Originally used exclusively for the Arabic language, the Arabic alphabet was adapted to the Persian language, adding four letters: , , , and . Many languages which use the Perso-Arabic script add other letters...
, the language was considered a vital element of the Islamic culture for Indian Muslims; Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
and the Devanagari script were seen as fundamentals of Hindu culture
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
.
While the use of Urdu grew common with Muslims in northern India, the Muslims of Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
(a province in the eastern part of British Indian sub-continent) primarily used the Bengali language. Bengali is an Eastern Indo-Aryan language that arose from the eastern Middle Indic languages around 1000 CE and developed considerably during the Bengal Renaissance
Bengal Renaissance
The Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the region of Bengal in Undivided India during the period of British rule...
. As early as the late 19th century, social activists such as the Muslim feminist
Islamic feminism
Islamic feminism is a form of feminism concerned with the role of women in Islam. It aims for the full equality of all Muslims, regardless of gender, in public and private life. Islamic feminists advocate women's rights, gender equality, and social justice grounded in an Islamic framework...
Roquia Sakhawat Hussain were choosing to write in Bengali to reach out to the people and develop it as a modern literary language. Supporters of Bengali opposed Urdu even before the partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
, when delegates from Bengal rejected the idea of making Urdu the lingua franca of Muslim India in the 1937 Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
session of the Muslim League. The Muslim League was a British Indian political party that became the driving force behind the creation of Pakistan as a Muslim
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
state separate from British India.
Early stages of the movement
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
advocated Urdu as the sole state language, and its exclusive use in the media and in schools. Opposition and protests immediately arose. Students from Dhaka rallied under the leadership of Abul Kashem, the secretary of Tamaddun Majlish
Tamaddun Majlish
Tamaddun Majlish is an Islamic cultural organization in Bangladesh, established in 1947 by Principal Abul Kashem in erstwhile East Pakistan...
, a Bengali Islamic cultural organisation. The meeting stipulated Bengali as an official language of Pakistan and as a medium of education in East Pakistan. However, the Pakistan Public Service Commission
Pakistan Public Service Commission
The Punjab Public Service Commission is a government agency responsible for hiring and administering the provincial civil services and management services in Punjab Province, it was designated as autonomous agency to advise the federal government.- History :...
removed Bengali from the list of approved subjects, as well as from currency notes and stamps. The central education minister Fazlur Rahman
Fazlur Rahman
Fazlur Rahman Malik was a well-known scholar of Islam; M. Yahya Birt of the Association of Islam Researchers described him as "probably the most learned of the major Muslim thinkers in the second-half of the twentieth century, in terms of both classical Islam and Western philosophical and...
made extensive preparations to make Urdu the only state language of Pakistan. Public outrage spread, and a large number of Bengali students met on the University of Dhaka campus on 8 December 1947 to formally demand that Bengali be made an official language. To promote their cause, Bengali students organised processions and rallies in Dhaka.
Leading Bengali scholars argued why only Urdu should not be the state language. The linguist Muhammad Shahidullah
Muhammad Shahidullah
Muhammad Shahidullah , popularly known as Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah was a famous Bengali educationist, writer philologist and linguist.A dormitory in University of Dhaka is named after him .-Early life:...
pointed out that Urdu was not the native language of any part of Pakistan, and said, "If we have to choose a second state language, we should consider Urdu." The writer Abul Mansur Ahmed
Abul Mansur Ahmed
Abul Mansur Ahmed was a Bangladeshi littérateur. Was also a politician and journalist. He was born in Mymensingh. Renowned journalist and editor of The Daily Star Mahfuz Anam is his son.-Student life:...
said if Urdu became the state language, the educated society of East Pakistan would become 'illiterate' and 'ineligible' for government positions. The first Rastrabhasa Sangram Parishad
Rastrabhasa Sangram Parishad
The Rastrabhasa Sangram Parishad was an organisation founded by Bengali politicians and intellectuals to agitate for the recognition of the Bengali language by the Government of Pakistan...
(National Language Action Committee), an organisation in favour of Bengali as a state language was formed towards the end of December 1947. Professor Nurul Huq Bhuiyan
Nurul Huq Bhuiyan
A.S.M Nurul Haque Bhuiyan was a Chemistry professor and politician who was a senior leader of the Tamaddun Majlish and the first convener of the Rastrabhasa Sangram Parishad during the Language Movement....
of the Tamaddun Majlish convened the committee. Later, Parliament member Shamsul Huq
Shamsul Huq
Shamsul Huq was a Bengali politician who led a parliamentary committee in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan to advocate for the recognition of the Bengali language during the Language movement of the 1950s...
convened a new committee to push for Bengali as a state language. Assembly member Dhirendranath Datta
Dhirendranath Datta
Dhirendranath Datta was a Bengali lawyer by profession who was also active in the politics of undivided Bengal in pre-partition India, and later in East Pakistan...
proposed legislation in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan
Constituent Assembly of Pakistan
The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was formed to write Pakistan's constitution, and serve as its first parliament. It first convened on 11 August 1947, before the end of British rule on August 15, 1947. Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the first President of this Assembly until his death on...
to allow members to speak in Bengali and authorise its use for official purposes. Datta's proposal was supported by legislators Prem Hari Burman, Bhupendra Kumar Datta
Bhupendra Kumar Datta
Bhupendra Kumar Dutta was a Indian militant and revolutionary who fought for Indian independence from British rule...
and Sris Chandra Chattaopadhyaya of East Bengal, as well as the people from the region. Prime minister
Prime Minister of Pakistan
The Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...
Liaquat Ali Khan
Liaquat Ali Khan
For other people with the same or similar name, see Liaqat Ali Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan was a Pakistani statesman who became the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Defence minister and Commonwealth, Kashmir Affairs...
and the Muslim League denounced the proposal as an attempt to divide the Pakistani people, thus the legislation was defeated.
Agitations of 1948
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka is the oldest university in Bangladesh. It is a multi-disciplinary research university and is among the top universities in the region. Established on July 21, 1921, as per the Government of India Act, 1920, it was modelled on the Universities in England and soon gained...
and other colleges of the city organized a general strike in 11 March 1948 to protest the omission of Bengali language from official use, including coins, stamps and recruitment tests for the navy. The movement restated the demand that Bengali be declared an official language of Pakistan. Political leaders such as Shamsul Huq, Shawkat Ali
Shawkat Ali
Shawkat Ali , , politician and a leader of the Bengali Language Movement. He was one of the founders of Awami Muslim League - which later became Awami League and is now the Bangladesh Awami League. He was a member of all three Rastrabhasa Sangram Parishad. He was also the Chief Organizer of Dhaka...
, Kazi Golam Mahboob
Kazi Golam Mahboob
Kazi Golam Mahboob is an activist of the Language Movement that took place in the erstwhile East Pakistan . He was also an active politician and worked in both of the major political parties of Bangladesh....
, Oli Ahad
Oli Ahad
-Early life:Ahad was born at the Islampur village of Brahmanbaria. In 1944 he passed matriculation from Daudkandi Government Aided High School. During the election for referendum of Pakistan, Ahad got involved with politics and campaigned in various places like Tripura, Bogra and was arrested...
, Abdul Wahed and others were arrested during the rallies. Rally leader Mohammad Toaha
Mohammad Toaha
Mohammad Toaha is a language activist of the language movement and politician. He is considered as one of the main student leader during the movement....
was hospitalised after attempting to snatch a rifle from a police officer. Student leaders, including Abdul Matin
Abdul Matin (language activist)
Abdul Matin is a language activist of the Bengali Language Movement that took place in the erstwhile East Pakistan to make Bangla one of the state language of Pakistan. He was one of the leading student leader and organizer of the movement...
and Abdul Malek Ukil
Abdul Malek Ukil
Abdul Malek Ukil was a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician. He was one of the founding members of East Bengal Muslim Students League and was associated with a leading political party, Awami League.-Early life:...
took part in the procession.
In the afternoon of 11 March, a meeting was held to protest police brutality and arrests. A group of students marching towards the chief minister Khawaja Nazimuddin
Khawaja Nazimuddin
Hajji Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin, KCIE , was the second Governor-General of Pakistan, and later the second Prime Minister of Pakistan as well.-Early life:...
's house was stopped in front of the Dhaka High Court
Dhaka High Court
The Dhaka High Court is one of the most important high courts in Bangladesh, located in the capital of Dhaka with jurisdiction for the Dhaka District....
. The rally changed its direction and moved in the direction of the Secretariat building. Police attacked the procession injuring several students and leaders including A. K. Fazlul Huq
A. K. Fazlul Huq
Not to be confused with the cricket ground in Dhaka Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium Sher-e-Bangla Abul Kashem Fazlul Huq was a well-known Bengali statesman in the first half of the 20th century...
. Continuing strikes were observed from 12 March to 15 March. Under such circumstances, the chief minister Nazimuddin signed an accord with the student leaders agreeing to some of the terms and conditions, without complying to the demand that Bengali be made a state language.
In the height of civic unrest, Governor-General of Pakistan
Governor-General of Pakistan
The Governor-General of Pakistan was the representative in Pakistan of the Crown from the country's independence in 1947. When Pakistan was proclaimed a republic in 1956 the connection with the British monarchy ended, and the office of Governor-General was abolished.-History:Pakistan gained...
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah was a Muslim lawyer, politician, statesman and the founder of Pakistan. He is popularly and officially known in Pakistan as Quaid-e-Azam and Baba-e-Qaum ....
arrived in Dhaka on 19 March 1948. On 21 March, at a civic reception at Racecourse Ground
Suhrawardy Udyan
Suhrawardy Udyan formerly known as Ramna Racecourse ground is a national memorial located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Once known as ‘‘Bagh-e-Badshahi’’ during the Mughal rule, it is named after Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Originally it served as the military club of the British soldiers stationed in Dhaka...
, he claimed that the language issue was designed by a "fifth column
Fifth column
A fifth column is a group of people who clandestinely undermine a larger group such as a nation from within.-Origin:The term originated with a 1936 radio address by Emilio Mola, a Nationalist General during the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War...
" to divide Pakistani Muslims. Jinnah further declared that "Urdu, and only Urdu" embodied the spirit of Muslim nations and would remain as the state language, labelling those who disagreed with his views as "Enemies of Pakistan". Jinnah delivered a similar speech at Curzon Hall
Curzon Hall
Curzon Hall is part of the school of science of the University of Dhaka. With its significance in education during the post independence era of Bangladesh as well as afterwards, it has become an emblem of educational tradition of the country.-History:...
of the University of Dhaka on 24 March. At both meetings, Jinnah was interrupted by large segments of the audience. He later called a meeting of a state language committee of action, and overruled the contract that was signed by Khawaja Nazimuddin with the student leaders. Before Jinnah left Dhaka on 28 March, he delivered a speech on radio reasserting his "Urdu-only" policy.
Shortly thereafter, the East Bengal Language Committee, presided by Maulana Akram Khan
Akram Khan (politician)
Akram Khan is an Indian politician, a leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party and the current Deputy Speaker of Haryana.He became the Deputy Speaker of Haryana for the first time in March 2010. In the Haryana assembly elections of 2009, he became the lone MLA of BSP in Haryana. Since 1966, he is the...
, was formed by the East Bengal government to prepare a report on the language problem. The Committee completed its report on 6 December 1950, but it was not published until 1958. The government suggested that Bengali be written in Arabic script
Arabic alphabet
The Arabic alphabet or Arabic abjad is the Arabic script as it is codified for writing the Arabic language. It is written from right to left, in a cursive style, and includes 28 letters. Because letters usually stand for consonants, it is classified as an abjad.-Consonants:The Arabic alphabet has...
, as a potential solution to the language conflict.
Events of 1952
Shorbodolio Kendrio Rashtrobhasha Kormi Porishod
The Shorbodolio Kendrio Rashtrobhasha Kormi Porishod was the leading political organisation in the Bengali Language Movement of East Bengal. On January 31, 1952 the organisation was formed in a meeting at the Bar Library Hall of Dhaka University, chaired by Maulana Bhasani...
(All-Party Central Language Action Committee) was formed in a meeting at the Bar Library Hall of the University of Dhaka, chaired by Maulana Bhashani. The central government's proposal of writing the Bengali language in Arabic script was vehemently opposed at the meeting. The action committee called for an all out protest on 21 February, including strikes and rallies. Students of the University of Dhaka and other institutions gathered on the university premises on 4 February and warned the government to withdraw its proposal to write Bengali in Arabic script, and insisted on the recognition of Bengali. As the preparation for demonstrations was going on, the government imposed Section 144 in the city of Dhaka, thereby banning any gatherings of more than four people.
21 February
East Bengal Legislative Assembly
The East Bengal Legislative Assembly was the elected law-making body of the province of East Bengal in Pakistan. It was later renamed the East Pakistan Legislative Assembly and would be succeeded by the Jatiyo Sangshad in 1971.-Speakers:...
and blocked the legislators' way, asking them to present their insistence at the assembly. When a group of students sought to storm into the building, police opened fire and killed a number of students, including Abdus Salam, Rafiq Uddin Ahmed
Rafiq Uddin Ahmed
Rafiq Uddin Ahmed was a demonstrator killed during the Bengali Language Movement demonstrations that took place in East Pakistan in 1952....
, Abul Barkat
Abul Barkat
Abul Barkat was a demonstrator killed during the Bengali Language Movement protests which took place in the erstwhile East Pakistan , in 1952....
and Abdul Jabbar. As the news of the killings spread, disorder erupted across the city. Shops, offices and public transport were shut down and a general strike began. At the assembly, six legislators including Manoranjan Dhar, Boshontokumar Das, Shamsuddin Ahmed and Dhirendranath Datta requested that chief minister Nurul Amin
Nurul Amin
Nurul Amin , was a prominent Bengali leader of Pakistan's Muslim League who served as the 8th Prime Minister of Pakistan, and the only first and the last Vice President of Pakistan from 1970 till 1971...
visit wounded students in hospital and that the assembly be adjourned as a sign of mourning. This motion was supported by some of the treasury bench members including Maulana Abdur Rashid Tarkabagish
Maulana Abdur Rashid Tarkabagish
Maulana Khondokar Abdur Rashid Tarkabagish was a Bangladeshi politician and parliamentarian. He strongly opposed the repressive mentality of the Nurul Amin government towards the Bengali Language Movement despite being a member of the treasury bench.-Early life:He was born in Tarulia village of...
, Shorfuddin Ahmed, Shamsuddin Ahmed Khondokar and Mosihuddin Ahmed. However Nurul Amin refused the requests.
22 February
Disorder spread across the province as large processions ignored section 144 and condemned the actions of the police. More than 30,000 people congregated at Curzon Hall in Dhaka. During the continued protests, police actions led to the death of four more people. This prompted officers and clerks from different organizations, including colleges, banks and the radio station, to boycott offices and join the procession. Protesters burned the offices of two leading pro-government news agencies, the Jubilee Press and the Morning News. Police fired on a major janaza, or mourning rally, as it was passing through Nawabpur Road. The shooting killed several people including activist Sofiur RahmanSofiur Rahman
Sofiur Rahman is considered in Bangladesh to be a martyr of the language movement which took place in the former East Pakistan....
and a nine-year old boy named Ohiullah.
Continued unrest
Narayanganj
Narayanganj is a city in central Bangladesh. It is located in the Narayanganj District, near the capital city of Dhaka and has a population of 220,000. The city is on the bank of the Shitalakshya River. The river port of Narayanganj is one of the oldest in Bangladesh...
observed a general strike. A protest followed on 29 February whose participants faced severe police beating.
The government censored news reports and withheld exact casualty figures during the protests. Most pro-government media held Hindus and communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
responsible for encouraging the disorder and student unrest. The families of Abul Barkat and Rafiq Uddin Ahmed tried to charge the police with murder, but the charges were dismissed by the police. An 8 April government report on the incidents failed to show any particular justification for police firings on the students. When the constituent assembly reconvened on 14 April, proceedings were stalled by members of the Muslim League when legislators from East Bengal sought to raise the language issue. On 16 April, the University of Dhaka reopened and the Shorbodolio Kendrio Rashtrobhasha Kormi Porishod, or All-Party Central Language Action Committee, held a seminar on 27 April at the Bar Association Hall. At the meeting delegates urged the government to release prisoners, relax restrictions on civil liberties and adopt Bengali as an official language.
Events after 1952
Armanitola
Armanitola is an area in Old Dhaka, Bangladesh. In the 18th and 19th century, Armenian diaspora, consisting mostly of merchants, lived in the area.The area has the Armenian Church, established circa 1781....
in Dhaka, where community leaders called for the immediate release of Maulana Bhashani and other political prisoners. However, West Pakistani politicians such as Fazlur Rahman aggravated sectional tensions by declaring that anyone who wanted Bengali to become an official language would be considered an "enemy of the state." Bengali students and civilians disobeyed the restrictions to celebrate the anniversary of the protests. Demonstrations broke out on the night of 21 February 1954 with various halls of the University of Dhaka raising black flags in mourning. Police arrested students and other protesters, who were released later despite refusing to post bail.
United Front in 1954
Political tensions came to a head as elections to the provincial assembly of East Bengal were held in 1954. The ruling Muslim League denounced the opposition United FrontUnited Front (East Pakistan)
The United Front was a coalition of mainly political parties from East Pakistan, organized and led by A. K. Fazlul Huq, Maulana Bhashani and Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy of the Awami League. The coalition demanded greater provincial autonomy, the United Front had claimed during their 1954 election...
coalition, which—led by A. K. Fazlul Huq
A. K. Fazlul Huq
Not to be confused with the cricket ground in Dhaka Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium Sher-e-Bangla Abul Kashem Fazlul Huq was a well-known Bengali statesman in the first half of the 20th century...
and the Awami League—wanted greater provincial autonomy. Several United Front leaders and activists were arrested. A meeting of parliament's Muslim League members, chaired by prime minister Muhammad Ali Bogra
Muhammad Ali Bogra
Nawabzada Mohammed Ali Bogra was a Pakistani statesman of Bengali origin, who served as the third Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1953 until 1955.-Early life:...
, resolved to give official recognition to Bengali. This decision was followed by a major wave of unrest as other ethnic groups sought recognition of other regional languages. Proponents of Urdu such as Maulvi Abdul Haq condemned any proposal to grant official status to Bengali. He led a rally of 100,000 people to protest against the Muslim League's decision. Consequently, the implementation failed and the United Front won a vast majority of seats in the legislative assembly, while the representation of the Muslim League was reduced to a historic low.
The United Front ministry ordered the creation of the Bangla Academy
Bangla Academy
Bangla Academy , established on 3 December 1955, is the national academy for promoting Bangla language in Bangladesh. The main office of the organization is located at the Burdwan House, once a part of the campus of the University of Dhaka, beside Suhrawardy Udyan.-History:The importance of...
to promote, develop, and preserve Bengali language, literature, and heritage. However, the United Front rule was temporary, as Governor General Ghulam Muhammad
Ghulam Muhammad
Malik Ghulam Muhammad served as the third Governor-General of Pakistan from 1951 until 1955, shortly before his death in 1956.-Early life:...
cancelled the government and started Governor's rule on 30 May 1954. the United Front again formed the ministry on 6 June 1955 after the governor's regime ended. The Awami League did not participate in this ministry though.
Following the return of the United Front to power, the anniversary on 21 February 1956 was observed for the first time in a peaceful atmosphere. The Government supported a major project to construct a new Shaheed Minar. The session of the constituent assembly was stopped for five minutes to express condolence for the students slain in the police shootings. Major rallies were organised by Bengali leaders and all public offices and businesses remained closed.
Constitution reform
On 7 May 1954, the constituent assembly resolved, with the Muslim League's support, to grant official status to Bengali. Bengali was recognised as the second official language of Pakistan on 29 February 1956, and article 214(1) of the constitution of Pakistan was reworded to "The state language of Pakistan shall be Urdu and Bengali."However, the military government formed by Ayub Khan made attempts to re-establish Urdu as the sole national language. On 6 January 1959, the military regime issued an official statement and reinstated the official stance of supporting the 1956 constitution's policy of two state languages.
Liberation of Bangladesh
Although the question of official languages was settled by 1956, the military regime of Ayub Khan promoted the interests of West Pakistan at the expense of East Pakistan. Despite forming the majority of the national population, the East Pakistani community continued to be under-represented in the civil and military services, and received a minority of state funding and other government help. This was mainly due to lack of representative governmentDemocracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
in the fledgling state. Mainly due to regional economic imbalances sectional divisions grew, and support for the Bengali ethnic nationalist Awami League, which invoked the 6-point movement
Six point movement
The 6 Point Movement was a Bengali nationalist movement in East Pakistan spearheaded by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which eventually led to the liberation of Bangladesh. The movement's main agenda was to realize the six demands put forward by a coalition of Bengali nationalist political parties in 1966,...
for greater provincial autonomy. One demand was that East Pakistan be called Bangladesh (Land of Bengalis), which subsequently led to the Bangladesh Liberation War
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
.
Legacy
Ekushey Book Fair
The Ekushey Book Fair or Omor Ekushey Boi Mela , popularly known as Ekushey Boi Mela is the national book fair of Bangladesh...
is held every year to commemorate the movement. Ekushey Padak
Ekushey Padak
Ekushey Padak is one of the highest civilian awards in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of the martyrs of the Language Movement of 1952 that took place on February 21, 1952.-2001:*Shah Abdul Karim...
, one of the highest civilian awards in Bangladesh, is awarded annually in memory of the sacrifices of the movement. Songs such as Abdul Gaffar Choudhury
Abdul Gaffar Choudhury
Abdul Gaffar Choudhury , is a Bangladeshi author and rpo-Awami league columnist, perhaps best known for his lyric Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano -- which has become the main song commemorating the Language Movement, the touchy music having been composed by Shaheed Altaf Mahmud.-Life:He left Bangladesh...
's Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano
Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano
Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano Ekushey February is a Bengali song which was written by Abdul Gaffar Choudhury to mark the Bengali Language Movement in the 1950s in East Pakistan. The song title is translated as My Brothers Blood Spattered or My Brothers Blood Spattered 21 February...
, set to music by Shaheed Altaf Mahmud, as well as plays, works of art and poetry played a considerable role in rousing the people's emotions during the movement. Since the events of February 1952, poems, songs, novels, plays, films, cartoons and paintings were created to capture the movement from varied point of views. Notable artistic depictions include the poems Bornomala, Amar Dukhini Bornomala and February 1969 by Shamsur Rahman
Shamsur Rahman
Shamsur Rahman was a Bangladeshi poet, columnist and journalist. Rahman, who emerged in the latter half of the 20th century, wrote more than sixty books of poetry and is considered a key figure in Bengali literature. He was regarded the unofficial poet laureate of Bangladesh...
, the film Jibon Theke Neya
Jibon Theke Neya
Jibon Theke Neya is a Bengali film by Bangladeshi filmmaker Zahir Raihan.The film is a political satire based on the Bengali Language Movement, and stars Shaukat Akbar, Anwar Hossain, Khan Ataur Rahman and Rosy Samad....
by Zahir Raihan
Zahir Raihan
Zahir Raihan was a Bangladeshi novelist, writer and filmmaker. He is perhaps best known for his documentary Stop Genocide made during the Bangladesh Liberation War. He disappeared on December 30, 1972 trying to locate his brother, the famous writer Shahidullah Kaiser, who was captured and killed by...
, the stage play Kobor by Munier Chowdhury
Munier Chowdhury
Munier Chowdhury was a Bangladeshi educationist, playwright, literary critic and political dissident.-Education:...
and the novels Ekushey February by Raihan and Artonaad by Shawkat Osman
Shawkat Osman
Shawkat Osman full-name Sheikh Azizur Rahman was a Bangladeshi novelist and short story writer. He was born in Sabalsingha pur 1917 in the district of Hughli, West Bengal.His father's name Sheikh Mohammad Yehia.-Education:He was educated at the Calcutta Madrassa , and at the St...
. Bangladesh officially sent a proposal to UNESCO to declare 21 February as "International Mother Language Day." The proposal was supported unanimously at the 30th General Conference of UNESCO held on 17 November 1999.
Two years after the first monument was destroyed by the police, a new Shaheed Minar
Shaheed Minar
The Shaheed Minar is a national monument in Dhaka, Bangladesh, established to commemorate those killed during the Language Movement demonstrations of 1952....
(Monument of Martyrs) was constructed in 1954 to commemorate the protesters who lost their lives. Work on a larger monument designed by the architect Hamidur Rahman
Hamidur Rahman (artist)
Hamidur Rahman was a Bangladeshi artist and sculptor. He is best known as the architect of the Shaheed Minar Bengali is a national monument in Dhaka, Bangladesh, established to commemorate the martyrs of the Language Movement of 1952.-References:...
began in 1957 with the support of the United Front ministry. Hamidur Rahman’s model consisted of a large complex in the yard of the Dhaka Medical College Hostel. The design included a half-circular column symbolizing a mother with her martyred sons standing at the dais in the center of the monument. Although the imposition of martial law in 1958 interrupted the work, the monument was completed and inaugurated on 21 February 1963 by Abul Barkat
Abul Barkat
Abul Barkat was a demonstrator killed during the Bengali Language Movement protests which took place in the erstwhile East Pakistan , in 1952....
's mother, Hasina Begum. Pakistani forces demolished the monument during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, but the Bangladeshi government reconstructed it in 1973.
Outside East Pakistan, movement for equal status of Bengali also took place in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state of Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
. On May 19, 1961, 11 Bengalis were killed in Police firing in Silchar
Silchar
Silchar is the headquarters of Cachar district in the state of Assam in India. It is the economic gateway to the state of Mizoram and part of Manipur. It is south east of Guwahati. The city of Silchar has tremendous commercial importance and is the second largest city in the state of Assam...
Railway Station, Assam, while demanding state recognition of Bengali language. Subsequently, Bengali was given semi-official status in the three Bengali-majority districts of Assam.
Criticism
Although the Language Movement is considered to have laid the foundations for ethnic nationalismEthnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
in many of the Bengalis of East Pakistan, it also heightened the cultural animosity between the authorities of the two wings of Pakistan. In West Pakistan, the movement was seen as a sectional uprising against Pakistani national interests. The rejection of the "Urdu-only" policy was seen as a contravention of the Perso-Arabic culture of Muslims and the founding ideology of Pakistan, the Two-Nation Theory
Two-Nation Theory
The Two-Nation Theory proposed by Allama Iqbal is the ideology that the primary identity of Muslims in the Indian subcontinent is their religion, rather than their language or ethnicity, and therefore Indian Hindus and Muslims are two distinct nationalities, regardless of ethnic or other...
. Some of the most powerful West Pakistani politicians considered Urdu a product of Indian Islamic culture, while they saw Bengali as a part of "Hinduized" Bengali culture. Most,however,stood by the "Urdu only" policy as they believed that only a single language, one that was not indigenous to Pakistan, should serve as the national language. This kind of thinking also provoked considerable opposition in West Pakistan, wherein there existed several linguistic groups. As late as in 1967, military dictator Ayub Khan said, "East Bengal is ... still under considerable Hindu culture and influence."
The Awami Muslim League turned over to Bengali nationalism
Bengali nationalism
Bengali nationalism is the political expression of ethno-national consciousness of the Bengali people, who inhabit the ethno-linguistic region of Bengal. The region's territory is divided between Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal...
after the Movement, and shed the word "Muslim" from its name. The Language Movement inspired similar discontent in West Pakistan and provided momentum to ethnic nationalist parties. The political unrest in East Pakistan and rivalry between the central government and the United Front-led provincial government was one of the main factors culminating in the 1958 military coup by Ayub Khan.