Muhammad Al-Helal
Approved as a text in all the Maktabs of Bengal as per the new syllabus by the Government. Calcutta Gazette-11.11.26.
Nature Lesson Part II, prepared by Jorarganj High School's former Assistant Master, G.M., Farrokh Ahmed B.A., third edition, 1928, price only six annas.
The above words are written on the cover of a book written in Bengali, according to the Calcutta Gazette of 11.11.26, the third edition of which was published in 1928 and the book is better known as Prakriti Path, Part Two.
The placards of the 1948 Language Movement read, "My pride, my hope, the Bangla language is dying."
Bengali is a free gem in my oyster chest.
That's why I dream about this language.
“Proposal to make Bengali one of the central and state languages of East Bengal” is the headline of a newspaper contemporary with the language movement. The news written under this headline is – “Dhaka 8th April:- Today (8th April, 1948) the following resolution raised by Prime Minister Khwaja Nazimuddin in the East Bengal Council was adopted: “It is the opinion of this Council that Bengali language will replace English as the official language in the East Bengal province and this decision will be implemented immediately after all practical difficulties are removed. As far as possible, Bengali language or the mother tongue of the majority of the students in the educational institutions of East Bengal will be the medium of instruction.”
Another newspaper's headline at the time was: "Police atrocities in Jessore to suppress Bengali language movement - children and elderly people brutalized indiscriminately."
Newspaper headline in 1952
The Daily Ittefaq newspaper, which was founded by Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan (Bhasani), published on February 4, 1952, headlined - East Bengal is in turmoil due to Nazimuddin's betrayal of faith - Militants swear an oath with the signature of blood - No reward for the Reissman - We want the entire authority of the Provincial Financial Institution." Although the word militant was used positively at that time, it has now become a negative word. "We will not continue to mock Pakistan with the Bible of the holiday" etc.
Meanwhile, the same newspaper's headline on February 10, 1952, read: "Organizational strength and success: February 4th post - The entire province has declared a thunderous oath on the streets of the capital - The revolutionary voice and movement of the oppressed are the disaster of the oppressor." "General strike in the entire province on February 21st."
We saw how the language of the headlines or news stories of various newspapers and magazines from 1948 to 1952, the time of the 1952 Language Movement, was by observing various paper cuttings collected from Google. What was the language of the book Prakriti Path Part II, published according to the 11.11.26 Calcutta Gazette and edited in 1928, which was the most acceptable in this region about three decades before the Language Movement.
Now I would like to see how the headlines or the language of the newspapers during the period of division of West Pakistan and East Pakistan, almost two decades after the Language Movement, were. It is noteworthy how the news of the birth of a university in this country was published in the newspapers and what its language was like - let's see what the language of the news published under the title "Inauguration of Jahangirnagar Moslem University" was - (Staff Reporter) Provincial Governor Vice Admiral S, M Ahsan said at the inauguration ceremony of Jahangirnagar Moslem University in Savar yesterday, Tuesday, that the university should be preserved not only in the field of training, but also as a place to nurture ideal values.
The headlines of some other contemporary newspapers or slogans were - This struggle is the struggle for freedom, this struggle is the struggle for liberation. Inspired by this slogan, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was divided into two parts, and separate territories called West Pakistan and East Pakistan are appearing on the world map. The Daily Ittefaq carried the headlines "West Pakistan is under attack", "The Pak-India war has begun" and the Daily Pakistan of 1971 carried the headline "India is interfering in Pakistan's internal affairs" in its April 8 issue. On the other hand, the weekly Ranangan carried the headline "Bangla is free in December" in one of its contemporary issues.
I am quoting from a published newspaper or book because the literature, culture, language, national consciousness, etc. of any country are reflected in the contemporary newspapers, literature or published books of that country. It is not our subject to discuss what instructions are meant by the quotes, although recently Indian Prime Minister Damodar Narendra Modi, on his verified Facebook page, called the Victory Day of December 16, 1971, India's historic Victory Day.
“On this Victory Day, we honour the courage and sacrifice of those fearless soldiers who contributed to India's historic victory in 1971.” (Source: BBC News Bangla; December 16, 2024)
Besides, BBC Bangla's Radio Sangbad once broadcast part of a speech by Indira Gandhi during the 1971 riots. As far as I remember, she said something like this in that speech: 'This fight is between India and Pakistan.'
Today's topic of discussion is: What language did our predecessors in East Pakistan protest for in 1952, where did that language go, and what language are we, their successors, using? Whom should we protest against now in 2025?
Here are excerpts from a book published in 1926, that is, almost 100 years ago, and excerpts from newspapers published in 1948 to 1952, about three decades later, and excerpts from news stories published in newspapers about two decades later.
We have seen different forms in the language of each period. Even I myself did not understand the meaning of some of the words used in the initial quotation. We see that the language which is said to flow like a river of streams, no one can ever suppress it with any military force.
There are about 200 independent states in the world and many states of the world have fought many wars with many states for political independence or separation. Even now, wars of different states with different states are going on. But it is not heard that any nation or state has had to struggle for language. It is only the East Pakistanis who have been seen facing this issue, the Pakistani government.
A relevant point to mention here is that I had the opportunity to participate in an international youth conference in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, as a Bangladesh representative in 2017, which was organized by Afghanistan, India, the United States, and the United Nations. The main coordinator for India in this event was Abhishek Thakur.
It was through Abhishek Thakur's question that we had a bilateral conversation about the separation of East Pakistan from Pakistan in 1971, or the beginning of the conflict. The brief form of this conversation is - in response to one of his questions, I said that in 1952, East Pakistanis held a movement called the Language Movement to protest the language differences and the imposition of a different language by the Pakistani government.
This is where the conflict began and later, due to various economic, political oppressions, deprivations, etc., West Pakistan and East Pakistan were separated in 1971 through chaos. In response, he said that no other nation or country in the world had to fight for language. If there had been a war for language, there is no telling how many wars would have been fought in India alone and how many separate states India would have had to become. Because there are hundreds of languages in India alone. And can language ever be imposed? This is an automatic process. I had no other answer.
No nation in the world has ever had to fight or resist a language, except for East Pakistan and the then West Pakistan.
We know that Latin, French, Spanish or various languages of the world are written with English letters, just like Urdu (not Urdu) also uses 29 Arabic letters except 7 Urdu letters. Similarly, in various means of social communication or communication, the current Bengali language is also written with English letters, which is a very common thing, just a formality. It is more common on Facebook, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, email or Twitter. From factory workers to university professors, this kind of language is also seen. And I have not been able to figure out which Bengali language the FM radios of our country use in a mixture of different languages.
Where is the language for which our predecessors, the East Pakistanis, protested in 1952 today in 2025? The language for which our predecessors gave their lives has been distorted today. So, how can we, as their worthy successors, prevent the distortion of the language? If so, how, against whom will we protest, who or what will be our opponents? These are the big questions before us. If this question is not answered, was there a misunderstanding between East Pakistan and West Pakistan? So, did the West Pakistanis, even while in power, show the greatest stupidity by opposing our predecessors?
There are many languages in India, where people from one region cannot understand the language spoken by people from another region. Even the languages of Sylhet, Noakhali and Chittagong in Bangladesh are difficult to understand for people from other regions. This situation exists worldwide. If there were no movements there and no one would even take on the role of an opponent. Today, the question stands before us: Was it because of misunderstandings between both sides that our children of the sun had to die in 1952, and even while in power, the then Pakistani government showed the greatest stupidity?
Muhammad Al-Helal
MPhil Researcher (ABD)
Department of International Relations
Dhaka University
