Dakra bloodbath: A witness to 1971 brutality of Pakistani military ally Razakars

Armed with refined weapons, they went on a rampage within the village and gunned down whoever got here their method. They checked each Hindu home, separated women and men and dragged out some males carrying sarees. The males had been lined up in entrance of a temple as screams lease the air. Shots had been fired. And then, there was full hush.

It was a Friday when on May 21, 1971, Rajjab Ali Fakir’s Razakar Bahini, allies of Pakistan Army, of Bagerhat, carried out a brutal bloodbath of over 600 individuals, principally Hindus, in Dakra village of Perikhali Union of Rampal Upazila.

Kalibari of Dakra village was then a spiritual assembly place of the Hindus in that area. Badal Chandra Chakraborty was the chief pujari of the Kalibari. As a saint and spiritual guru, he was extremely revered and everybody addressed him as Guru Noakarta.

After May 11, 1971, individuals of the Hindu group began leaving the encompassing villages, however some devotees of Noakarta determined that on May 22, they might be part of their Guru and depart for India by boat by the Sundarbans.

As mentioned, a couple of days earlier than the bloodbath, quite a few Hindu households from neighbouring villages got here and settled in a whole lot of boats on the banks of Mangla River, Madartala River and Kumarkhali Canal round Kalibari.

Sayera, Khanpur, Banshbaria of Bagerhat Sadar Upazila; Morelganj upazila’s Aecharani, Rampal upazila’s Betkata, Bhojpatia and Mahishghata villages had a sizeable variety of individuals within the group. After spending the entire day within the village, they used to sleep within the boat that was stationed on the river financial institution at night time. Thus, by May 21, Dakra had grow to be like a big refugee camp. Those visiting the place exceeded 2,000.

All the individuals, who united underneath the management of Iman Ali Sheikh, Jonab Ali Sheikh Delwar Hussain and others, assured the Hindu group that they may keep secure there. They additionally received assurance on this regard from Afsar Uddin, a member of the Peace Committee of Banshtali village situated on the opposite aspect of Mongla River.

But the truth that the individuals of the Hindu group had been dwelling collectively on the similar place was an enormous catch for the perpetrators. Besides, the political opposition events began fascinated with retaliation for the Seventies elections. They despatched the information to Rajjab Ali, the Razakar commander of Bagerhat. An eyewitness noticed a medical faculty pupil, Liaqat Ali Ghaznavi from Dakra village, on a ship to Bagerhat with a letter written to Rajjab Ali the day earlier than the bloodbath.

On May 21, Rajjab Ali, together with his forces, arrived in Dakra in two giant boats. Each boat had 15-20 armed Razakars. The first boat went south-west of Kaliganj Bazar on the north financial institution of Mongla River and arrived at Duckra Bazar. The second boat crossed the Mongla River and took place on the base of the Kumarkhali canal. The boats first moored on the banks of the rivers and canals had been searched. Then, the Razakars of the primary boat barged into Dakra village from the west and the Razakars of the second boat entered the village from the east.

Dakra village was bursting with refugees who wished to go to India. The Razakars began firing at whoever they present in entrance of them. As quickly as gunshots had been heard, the general public got here to Guru Noakarta. Finally, the Razakars got here from either side and halted at Kalibari. Men and ladies are separated. Just a few Razakars checked each Hindu home to see if there have been extra males and located a couple of of them carrying sarees. Like sacrificial animals, they had been dragged out. After lining up all the boys in entrance yard of the temple, pictures had been fired. Hundreds of individuals had been gunned down inside seconds.

After this, the previous Akiz Uddin, alongside together with his shut affiliate Majid Kassai, stored turning over the our bodies, and slaughtered them in the event that they discovered somebody injured and nonetheless alive. The attackers then set Hindu homes on hearth. Some younger girls had been picked up in Rajjab Ali’s boat.

Although no girls had been killed in Kalibari, they shot and killed a number of girls close to the boat and on the street. An eyewitness stated, “After Razakar’s forces left, he saw the body of a woman along with many others on the wayside. A baby was trying to feed from her dead mother’s breast. Blood was splattered everywhere.”

Dayanand Mandal Dutta of Dakra village hid in his home as quickly as he heard the gunshots. Suddenly, a bullet hit him within the thigh and he was badly injured. He spent 6-7 days in the home of Iman Ali Sheikh and was handled by Abdul Mannan of Bhojpatia village.

After the bloodbath, those that had been alive within the Dakra village took shelter within the neighbouring Muslim quarters and a few left for India and not using a second’s delay.

Sheikh Nazrul Islam, the then chairman of Perikhali Union, claimed that no less than 646 individuals had been killed that day. The subsequent day, underneath the initiative of Dr Delwar Hossain, some younger individuals organized to bury the our bodies of the victims in Kalibari sq..

The youths buried about 200 our bodies within the sink gap and plenty of had been cremated. Besides, many our bodies received washed away in Mangla River, Madartali River and Kumarkhali canal.

The Bhadhyabhoomi space, together with the Noakartar temple, was submerged by the river a number of years in the past.

Gilatala college instructor Paritosh Kumar Banerjee, who witnessed the incident, believed that the toll was between 600 and 700. On the bloodbath day, he and his household had been crowding a ship on the banks of Madartali River close to Dakra Bazar, when Rajjab Ali’s forces landed there. He one way or the other escaped and took refuge in the home of a Muslim youth, who was referred to as a dacoit within the close by village of Gadhaghata.

About the subsequent day’s occasions, Banerjee wrote: “Early subsequent morning, I went to the village of Dakra, desirous to see the our bodies of my pricey ones. Gunmen didn’t permit us to enter the village. Threatened to kill me. I went again to a Hindu village two miles from Dakra. The village was empty. No one however two previous males had been there. I stayed on the home of a former Muslim pupil (who individuals thought was a dacoit). I heard from the ladies, who got here out of the Dakra, that the women weren’t killed. Males above the age of 12-13 had been the targets of the killers.

The pupil risked his life and introduced the ladies and kids members of a number of households who had been hiding in Dakra. No surprise, there have been no tears of their eyes. No one cried once they noticed me. Instead, there was seething anger. I realised that the horror had numbed their emotions. They have soul however no thoughts, they’ve nerves however no emotions.”

Credits

Reporter: Sahidul Hasan Khokon

Edited by: Darpan Singh

Interactive Producer: Raka Mukherjee

Interactive Developer: Vishal Rathour