Pakistani army started killings in Rangpur since Mar 03, 1971

RANGPUR, Mar 14 (BSS): Getting frightened witnessing curfew-breaking massive processions of the Bangalees in Rangpur on March 3 in 1971, the Pakistani occupation army and their non-Bengali Behari collaborators in Rangpur started genocide.
Former District Muktijoddha Commander Mosaddek Hossain Bablu said the occupation forces started planning for cleansing the innocent Bangalees, including intellectuals, of Rangpur city that turned volatile since the beginning of March.
"As soon as hatred Pakistani President Yahiya Khan on March 01 cancelled the scheduled parliament session on March 03, 1971 and declared a curfew on the day, the city of Rangpur turned explosive," Bablu said.
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman vehemently rejected cancellation of the scheduled parliament session and called strike on March 02 in Dhaka and March 03 throughout the country.
Under extremely volatile situations, the local student leaders gathered at a meeting at 'Panga House' in the city on March 02 and chalked out next strategies in a meeting with Chhatra League leader Rafikul Islam Golap in the chair.
Accordingly, thousands of people brought out massive protest processions on the city streets here as per Bangabandhu's call breaking curfew on March 03 when the nation was in unprecedented non- cooperation movements against the Pakistani regime.
"Around 9:00 am, school student Sangku (12) of Guptapara area, came out without taking breakfast along with his elder brother Kumaresh Samajhder Babu and participated in the non-cooperation movement rally," Bablu said.
At one stage, non-Bengali Behari Sarforaz Khan opened fire from his house in Alamnagar area at Sangku who succumbed to his injuries on way to hospital at 9:30 am.
"As the news of Sangku's martyrdom instantly spread, every Bangalee got extremely angry. Thousands of them participated in the massive processions sparking the War of Liberation for the ultimate struggles for independence," Bablu added.
On that day, college student Abul Kalam Azad and government employee Omar Ali also embraced martyrdoms here in the hands of the Pakistani army and their collaborator non-Bengali Beharis.
Former treasurer of Begum Rokeya University Professor Mozammel Haque said the Pakistani hyenas with their non-Bengali Behari collaborators caught 11 brilliant Bangalees in a pre-planned way on March 27, 1971 from their houses in the city.
Later in the small hours of April 04, the Pakistani blood-hungry occupation
forces with their local collaborators took them to Dakhiganj Shwashan (crematory) in the city and gunned them down.
Luckily, one of them Awami League leader Dr Dinesh Chandra Bhowmick alias Mantu Daktar, who received severe injuries, escaped death and later joined the Mukti Bahini after getting proper treatments in neighbouring India.
Talking to the news agency, general secretary of district unit of Ghatok Dalal Nirmul
Committee Moazzem Hossain Lablu said the occupation forces killed the ten intellectual persons on April 04, 1971.
Being organised, some 30,000 Bangalees irrespective of caste, creed and religion, attempted to capture Rangpur Cantonment on March 28, 1971 when 600 of them were gunned down by the Pakistani army at Nishbetganj area igniting the War of Liberation.
"The killing of three brave sons on March 03, ten intelligentsias on April 04 and 600 Bangalees on March 28 ignited heroism in every Rangpur people to launch stiff resistance against the Pakistani occupation forces," Lablu said.
Freedom fighter Akbor Hossain said the occupation forces with their non-Bengali Behari collaborators continued carrying out killing of hundreds of innocent Bangalees in Rangpur since March in 1971.
"Martyrdom of three brave sons, ten intelligentsias and 600 innocent Bangalees inspired the Bangalees to join the Mukti Bahini en-masse to ultimately snatch away the independence of Bangladesh on December 16, 1971," Hossain added.