The Liberation War of Bangladesh from a martyr's mother's perspective

Bangladesh and Pakistan fought a liberation war in 1971. However, the Indian subcontinent has been
divided into two countries, India and Pakistan, in the past. East Pakistan and West Pakistan were the two
wings of Pakistan. The West Pakistanis ruled and oppressed the East Pakistanis from the beginning. After
suffering the oppression of West Pakistan from 1947 to 1971, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
finally declared East Pakistan's independence on March 26th. Following a nine-month struggle,
Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan on December 16, 1971. There are numerous publications
and other sources of information regarding the liberation war of 1971. However, none has provided an
accurate portrait of a martyr's mother. How a mother of a freedom fighter felt while letting go of her son
for war, what she has gone through all things from a mother's perspective, is present in the book called
"Of Blood and Fire: The Untold Story of Bangladesh's War of Independence". The reader will discover
what it was like for a mother to feel and endure daily while her son was at war and how a mother
expressed condolences to herself. After all, we can say that "Of Blood and Fire: The Untold Story of
Bangladesh's War of Independence" by Jahanara Imam lets the readers feel what the mother of a freedom
fighter went through during the liberation war of Bangladesh.

Jahanara Imam was not only an author of "Of Blood and Fire: The Untold Story of Bangladesh's War of
Independence '' but also a political activist, and educator. From the University of Dhaka, she received her
bachelor's and master's degrees in Bengali literature, respectively. She supervised Siddheswari Girls
School as headmistress. In 1960, she resigned from her work to raise her sons properly. She is referred to
in Bangladesh as "Shaheed Janani," which translates as "mother of a martyred freedom fighter". Sharif,
her husband, Rumi, and Jami, her younger son, are members of her family. She left her job in 1960 so that
she could raise her sons properly. The author supported different movements that had happened in early
March of 1971. She let Rumi take part in the movements despite there being a danger to Rumi's life. She
even took part in the movement physically that was organized by writers on March 14th, 1971. Rumi was
a follower of Marxism and used to read the books written by Mao Tse-tung, Karl Marx, and Che Guevara.
"Karl Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Mao Tse Tung are the subjects of their discussion" (Imam, 2018, 29). As
he was a Marxist, he was a bit different from the rich boys of his time. His talking was different and he
could easily convince people. We see in the book that from the very beginning he was supporting
different movements that were happening in East Pakistan. He was also inspired by the speech that
Sheikh Mujib gave on March 7th. Rumi entered the house, waving his hands dramatically. He said, "‘This
is our struggle for liberation. This is our struggle for independence.'" (Imam, 2018, 25). Even other
members of the family, including Jahanara Imam, got excited after hearing stories about the speech and
got excited to hear it. In the early months of 1971, the 7th March address gave a vision of the
independence movement to the family members and other family friends, and they passionately supported
the movements that were taking place. As a result of the uprisings that began in early March, according to
Rumi, Sekh was in a position to declare his independence without delay.

Additionally, Jahanara purchased several of the nation's new flags and gave them to her guests. However,
because Rumi was a Marxist, he was rather violent, and with his involvement in the early March
movements, Jahanara was concerned about him. Jahanara discovered Rumi was keeping explosives in his
room as well. Rumi, as a communist, had always believed that the arms revolution was essential to
independence. Rumi even said, "We have passed the stage of fear, Mother. There is no stepping back
now. "(Imam, 2018, 34). This is why Jahanara was always afraid of Rumi, that he might fall into danger.
Jahanara even asked Niogi, who was an astrologer, "Am I likely to lose Rumi?" (Imam, 2018, 36). Sheikh
Mujib, on the other hand, was supporting the ongoing protests and was having meetings with Yahya
every day after the 7th March speech. Jahanaras's family and friends had different opinions about it. Some
were supporting what Sheikh Mujib was doing, but others, including Rumi, were saying that Yahaya was
doing this to buy some time because the military personnel from the west-Pakistan were coming to the
country every day. Rumi even predicted that something horrible would occur.

All of these incidents occurred as a result of West Pakistan's oppression of East Pakistan from the start.
Pakistan was initially separated into East Pakistan and West Pakistan. To bolster West Pakistan's
influence in East Pakistan, Zinnah proclaimed that Pakistan's national language would be Urdu. Students
in East Pakistan were repressed in response, and the student movement peaked in February 1952. On
February 21, 1952, students were killed by police firing. Following that, other protests occurred,
eventually compelling the government to designate Bangla as the national language of East Pakistan.
Even Pakistan's government oppressed East Pakistan in every imaginable way. They treated East Pakistan
as a colony, just as the British did with our subcontinent in the past. The amount of oppression was so
high that Pakistan became a role model of capitalism. Products were also priced differently in East and
West Pakistan. Even Jahanara wanted to show the poster named "Sonar Bangla Soshan Keno", which
shows the price differences, to Kitty, to let her know why these movements in Bangladesh were
happening. West Pakistan was also used to obtain funding from East Pakistan. Even in government jobs,
the majority of employees were West Pakistanis. " To elect the members of the National Assembly,
general elections were held in Pakistan on December 7th, 1970. Voting took place in 300 constituencies,
East Pakistan's party, Awami League, won the majority of the constituencies, which means the Awami
League had the right to be the head of the federal government. As Pakistan's federal government was then
governed by a military dictatorship, Yahya would never imagine giving up his power to the civilian party
of East Pakistan. This is why Yahya and PPP chairman Bhutto proposed the Awami League govern the
provincial government of East Pakistan and the PPP take over both the federal government and the
provincial government of West Pakistan. This is why all the movements in East Pakistan started to
happen "(Naeem, 2020). Rumi and other students were protesting for this reason. All of the early March
movements happened for this reason. The Bengali party deserved to rule, but the Pakistan government did
not want to give us the right to rule, just like the British used to do. We got independence from British
rule, but the Pakistan government was not less than British. They did not oppress us as much as the
British did in terms of the economy, but they were much more than the British in terms of genocidal acts
toward Bengalis. But the British did oppress Bengal longer than West Pakistan, so the amount of
oppression is higher in numbers as the duration is long. After centuries of tyranny under British control,
Bengal had few natural resources left. However, the few resources Bengal did have were oppressed and
taken away by West Pakistan. However, the development of West Pakistan's major cities, such as
Islamabad and Karachi, occurred primarily during the period of the Pakistani administration over Bengal.
This is why Jahanara never stopped Rumi from going to the movements against the Pakistan-government
because she knew that it was only through different movements and struggles that we got independence
from the British. The British and Pakistan were identical in that they never dealt fairly with the
subjugated peoples of their colonies; they constantly made promises but then betrayed them. The only
way to acquire full freedom from them is through struggle.
Dark night came on March 25, the West-Pakistan military killed innocent sleeping Bengalis to break their
desire for independence. They burned down slums and destroyed as many things as they could in East
Pakistan. They arrested Sheikh Mujib on that very night, but he declared the independence of the country
before getting arrested. Jahanara Imam and her family observed the night very closely. They had no idea
what was going on back then, but as time went by, they realized. They heard stories from their friends and
gave shelter to those in need, like students from Dhaka University. Kitty, a citizen of the United States of
America, had been living with them for a long time. But Jahanara thought that if she continued living
with them after 25/26 March she may face danger. As the Pakistani military was committing genocide,
she might get killed along with the family of Jahanara. Jahanara also felt the necessity to struggle after
seeing the genocide of Dark Night. She said, while going by the destroyed Shaheed Minar, "Oh Shaheed
Minar, we shall take revenge for this indignity someday" (Imam, 2018, 57). She also heard tragic stories
about Dark Night from friends and relatives. Rumi did not talk much about Dark Night even though he
was a talkative person. Yes, Rumi expected something horrible was going to happen, but he did not
expect this much of a massacre to occur in his motherland.

The reader gets a proper understanding of how a family of Dhaka spent their challenging times during the
liberation war. They heard different stories, like how the army killed a mass of people, including children,
cold-bloodedly. The Pakistani army even used to take all the blood from the normal people of East
Pakistan to store it in the blood bank. The Biharis were helping the army to locate the young boys so that
the army could keep an eye on them. After hearing these stories, they knew at any moment they could die,
but still wanted to enjoy every moment they could. When Jahanra made some rules for their home, Jami
commented, "Mother, you are promulgating Home Law regulations one after another like Tikka
Khan"(Imam, 2018, 72). The government pretended and acted as if everything was going normally after
March 25th. The government even opened up schools, corporate institutions, and factories. Jahanara did
not send Jami to school because of his security and to take part in the movements that everything was not
going as normal. Jahanara and her family, friends and neighbours used to talk about it and criticize it.
They always waited to hear the broadcast of Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra. It used to broadcast on their
channel for about one to two hours, but one of the goals of the family was to listen to this broadcast every
day. Readers can feel the necessity of Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra's part in the Liberation War. It was
the source of motivation and faith for the citizens of East Pakistan and the freedom fighters. Because this
radio station helped the people have faith in the freedom of Bangladesh.

Rumi was saying and predicting that a libation war had broken out on the borders of East-Pakistan. But
Jahnara, as a mother trying to protect her child, always tried to convince him that all of this was fake
news. Seeing that lots of his friends were going to war, Rumi also determined his mind about joining the
liberation war. However, he was never going to war without the permission of his parents, and his mother
Jahanra was sure from the beginning of March that his son would join and, if necessary, would sacrifice
his life for the liberation of the country. Rumi, as a Marxist, observed all the injustices happening around
him, he would want to protest against these wrongs that were happening around him, and she knew her
son very well. Jahanara also believed that Pakistanis should be punished, but she did not want her son to
get into danger. Because no mother in this world would give up her son at any cost. But when Rumi asked
for permission to go to war, despite having gone to an impressive degree in the United States, she said, "I
sacrifice you to the cause of the nation. You may join the war."(Imam, 2018, 79). The tone used in the
line describes how hard it was for the mother to say something like this while knowing that she might
regret his decision. Rumi was really happy after hearing that, but his mother never intended to sacrifice
her son. She loved her son more than anything else in the world. But as an obedient citizen of Bengal, she
felt that it was a mother's duty to send her child to war for the needs of the country.

For the mother, the child comes first, and she could not accept that her son was leaving to go somewhere
unknown, where there was no certainty in his life. A reader can feel the emotional pain Jahnara had
before and after letting go of her son for the war. The book also covers how a mother of a freedom fighter
gave herself the reason to send her son to war. Some of the lines and words used by Jahanara are quite
emotional indeed because the love of one's child as a mother is described in the book perfectly. She gave
herself reasons like "I think that I should have allowed him to go earlier. At least I would not have had to
live with the constant fear of him being picked up by Pakistani soldiers and drained of blood"(Imam,
2018, 90). Because draining whole blood from a live human being had never been done by any army in
the world except the Pakistani army. Jahanara gave herself this reason to keep her son away from Dhaka.
Even while hearing the date of Rumi’s leaving for war, she felt like someone was squeezing her ribcage
with a giant pair of pliers (Imam, 2018, 93). Here, the word "squeezing" her ribcage defines the emotional
pain she felt during that time. Not all mothers can leave their sons for war because of these kinds of
emotional pain but for mothers like Jahanara, we had so many freedom fighters who fought for our
country. While she was giving farewell to her son, readers could feel how much she wanted her son to
keep him to herself. As Rumi was carrying his bag with him, Jahanara saw her son as a college student.
Because a son is always a child to his mother. She even tried her best to have a last glimpse of her son
through the rearview mirror (Imam, 2018, 97). This line symbolizes what Jahanara wished for her child.
For the author of this review, page 97 is the most emotional aspect of the book. Because the reviewer felt
the love and affection of a mother while reading this page. The bravery exhibited by a mother in not
crying in front of her son while sending him to his uncertain life, where his chances of survival are slim.
When Jahanara refers to her son as a college student, she is implying that she had no idea her son had
grown up so much until he went to war. By reading this book, the reviewer felt the pain that all mothers
of freedom warriors suffered.

The book also describes how Jahanara felt after Rumi went to war. "I had trouble in breathing and my
eyes were moist. All I wanted to do was to cry my heart out"(Imam, 2018, 97). Here the author of the
book described perfectly what it was like to send a son to war from a mother's perspective. How could a
mother pass her days just like before while knowing that her son was in danger and every day her son was
facing death. Jahanara even played her TV loudly and kept everything in her house normal so that
neighbours could not suspect that her son had gone to fight in the liberation war. Here, Jahanara provided
an accurate portrayal of a Bengali mother, stating that you cannot express your sorrow at losing your son
to war in the same way that other mothers have done throughout history. Because in this war, you did not
know who to trust because there were lots of Bengali people who were supporting the Pakistani
government on a religious basis. It was really hard for a Bengali mother to keep all the sorrows within
herself during those challenging times and the book perfectly represents it. The book also describes how
the Pakistani government did not do it only for religion. The sub-characters of the book describe the
horrific acts committed by Pakistanis and non-Bengali Biharis, which perfectly represents that their goal
was not to establish Islam in East Bengal but their main intention was to show hatred for Bengalis.'They
raped young and old, no one was spared' (Imam, 2018, 143). In some incidents, they killed imams by
going inside the mosque, while the imam was reading the holy Quran. Some Biharis even killed all the
passengers on the bus without any reason. The doctor who treated these raped and injured victims of the
Pakistani military said, "If there is God, then these disciples of the devil must pay for their crimes"(Imam,
2018, p.143). This line exemplifies how an Islamic believer would question how a Muslim could do such
a thing to another Muslim, given that Islam is a religion of peace. But the depth of the line is too deep
because here it is also stated that if the Pakistani military could do such a thing to a Bengali Muslim then
what they did to Bengali Hindus is unimaginable. However, to elaborate, as most of the Pakistani military
were from Punjab, they used to think that, as they were closer to Arabs, they were the pure Muslims or
true Muslims. These Panjabi used to consider us from the British rule that Bengalis are rebellious and
they were never true Muslims.

The tone of the book changes over the course of time, as the book is like a calendar of the liberation
struggle of Bangladesh. At first, we see a happy family from Dhaka. The tone of the book changes when
the Dark Night happens, where we see that Jahanara and her family are uncertain about everything and
more hatred is created for the government of Pakistan. But when Rumi leaves for war, the mood of the
book changes to an emotional theme. Everyone in the family was not sure if they were doing the right
thing. The changing mood of the book over the course of the nine months is fascinating because every
month was hugely different from the others, different events occurred in different months. Even the tone
of the book changed to happiness when Rumi came home after a long time. Jahanara was so happy to see
her child that the reader can experience her feelings back then. Jahanara hated cigarettes but did not even
say anything to her son while she was having a cigarette. Which expressed that all she wanted then was
her son's well-being during those challenging times. But the mood of the story changed when Rumi and
his comrades got arrested because of the betrayal of their friend. Jahanara could not sleep until she got to
know the whereabouts of her family's condition. Her expression when they came back without Rumi
really makes the readers feel the sorrow and suffering of a mother. Jahanaras's use of emotional words
perfectly changed the mood of the book several times.

Jahanara described most of the events that happened during the 9 months of the liberation war and his
contribution to the nation, which was sacrificing her son for the needs of the nation. When Rumi was
being tortured by the military, Jahanara remained strong even after hearing about it. She did not even cry,
which represents how strong she was and how dedicated she was to the freedom of the country. For
mothers like her, we got independence from Pakistan because the Pakistan military used to torture the
soldiers so that their mothers would request their son to reveal the secrets of Mukti Bahini. Because the
mothers of our freedom fighters were strong, this was the reason our fighters did not reveal their secrets
while being tortured to death. Even Jahanara did not ask for a mercy petition because they thought it
would be an insult to Rumi’s ideals (Imam, 2018, p.225). Here, Jahanara and her family members knew
that if they asked for mercy, they could at least have a chance to save Rumi’s life. They were strong
because they knew the Pakistani government was just like the British Empire. Because as the British
made different promises to the subcontinent people in the past like they would leave the subcontinent
after World War 1 but they never kept their promises. In the past, the Pakistani government did the same
thing; in the 1970 elections, the Bengali party Awami League won the election, but they still did not
transfer power to Bengalis. So, Rumi was going to get killed by them, whether Rumi gave up Mukti
Bahini's secrets or Jahanara and her family asked for a mercy petition. For the reviewer of this review, I
think Jahanaras's decision was a bolt, but she did the right thing.

Even the Pakistani government used to always talk about the Unity of Pakitan and the unity of Islam.
Pakistan was divided from the subcontinent in the name of Muslim unity. But was there any unity in the
way West Pakistan treated East Pakistan before and after the 25th March 1971? From the start, they used
to oppress and dominate us. They used to use us as a product and took away most of our money to their
land and developed their own cities. We were treated as a minority from the beginning even though we
had more population. There was actually no unity between East and West Pakistan, Muslim unity was just
a name. By stating the name of Muslim Unity, they used to bind us with them. For Bengalis, it took many
years to figure out that there was no unity among us.

Jahanara described the 9 months of war perfectly. She described how Mukti Bahini fearlessly completed
different missions in Dhaka and also talked about non-Bengali collaborators of Pakistan, to save their skin
from the Pakistan army, they helped them by giving them information and instructions on the navigation
of Mukti Bahrainis. In the book's middle section, we observe most of Mukti Bahini's courageous and
discrete operations against Pakistan. Due to their guerilla warfare, the Pakistani army was afraid of going
out on the town on a regular basis. As a result, it was simple for the Indian army to target only the
Pakistani bases in order to inflict the greatest number of casualties on the Pakistani army. Additionally,
Pakistani collaborators were responsible for Rumi's death and the killing of our country's intellectuals. At
the end of the war, we observe these Pakistani collaborators and Biharis fleeing to Pakistan in a cowardly
manner. Due to them, the war's bloodshed was so costly to us. However, Pakistan surrendered on
December 16, 1971. This effectively destroyed the influence of racist and imperialist British colonial
control. A newly sovereign country was born, devoid of racism, oppression, colonialism, and capitalism.

Finally, Jahanara Imam's book "Of Blood and Fire: The Untold Story of Bangladesh's War of
Independence" allows readers to experience and feel what the mother of a freedom fighter went through
during the 1971 liberation war. Readers can see the war through the eyes of a civilian and a mother.
Readers will learn about the events that occurred and the Pakistani military's horrific deeds. The book also
discusses how the people of Bengal assisted Mukti Bahini. Rumi and his mother, Jahanara, are the main
characters of the book. The struggle of Jahanara for Rumi will be felt emotionally by the readers, as
Jahanara represents all the mothers of the 1971 liberation heroes. On the 16th of December 1971,
Jahanara received the reward for her sacrifice, but she was both joyful and unable to laugh. Because the
war's price was too costly for her. As the book focuses on civilian eyewitnesses to the liberation war, it is
appropriate for readers who enjoy documentaries and emotional true-life stories.

References

Imam, J. (2018). Of Blood and Fire: The Untold Story of Bangladesh's War of Independence (4th ed.).
Charulipi Prokashoni.

Naeem, R. (2020, December 7). The Watershed Moment in 1970 Elections That Broke Pakistan. The
Wire. Retrieved April 10, 2022, from https://thewire.in/south-asia/elections-that-broke-pakistan-1970-
history