When Pakistan Army and its allies barged into homes and gunned villagers down

It was the morning of November 25, 1971 and soothing rays of the solar fell on two villages. A gentle breeze wafted throughout. Suddenly, the calm was shattered and folks began working helter-skelter.

The Pakistan Army appeared from nowhere and their males barged into each family. They fired indiscriminately on the villagers, largely males. The orgy of violence in Ghatarchar and Bhawal continued for hours and left a whole bunch lifeless.

The mass killings began early within the morning in Ghatarchar. When the information reached the close by Bhawal village, individuals scurried for canopy. There was panic all over the place.

Only a number of Bhawal dwellers have been deceived by Razakars (native collaborators of the Pakistan Army) into believing that they’d nothing to fret about and will keep within the village.
Most villagers left their houses, nonetheless, many stayed again because of the assurance given by the Razakars. Just after they’d returned to their dwellings, the military males swooped down on the gullible villagers, and rained them with bullets.

Fifty one years after the bloodbath, Amar Chaan can’t maintain again his tears as he recounts the horrific morning when seven of his members of the family have been gunned down by the occupation military.
“Around 8 or 8.30 in the morning, we saw a handful of masked military men and some others (collaborators), coming through the road. We started running along the canal to save our lives. On the way, we noticed that the army had surrounded the adjacent areas of our school. The Razakars turned us back, saying they would do no harm to us. But, they started firing the moment we had come back to our houses. I picked up my elder son and ran with him along the canal while my wife fled with our younger son to the north. Having sustained bullet injuries, my father, sister, her husband, younger brother, nephew, and niece couldn’t escape.”

According to native freedom fighters, witnesses of the genocide and family of martyrs, native villagers had a fierce dispute with Faiz Hossain, the native Razakar commander, over the occupation of Ghatarchar playground throughout the Liberation War.
Razakar Faiz Hussain threatened that he would settle rating with the villagers as he couldn’t occupy the sector even with pretend paperwork. He then despatched a 7-point discover to Dhaka Cantonment informing it in regards to the presence of quite a few freedom fighters in Ghatarchar village. At the start of the Liberation War, Ghatarchar resident and East Pakistan Rifles (EPR) member Golam Mostafa, Rahman Matbar and several other villagers joined the conflict.

In the final week of November, Rahman Matabar got here dwelling and known as the native youths to affix the Liberation War. He held a gathering with the native youth on the evening of November 24 close to the native Tanpara Mosque to enlist these taking part as freedom fighters and to determine on some essential points. Several younger individuals instantly signed as much as be part of the conflict.
After studying in regards to the assembly of the liberty fighters from dependable sources, Faiz Hossain, Razakar Moktar Mia and Razakar Zainal Doctor of Looter Char (native village), secretly knowledgeable the Pakistani Army in regards to the presence of the liberty fighters.

On November 25, at 1.30 am, round 150 Pakistani troops entered Washpur Ghat by way of the Buriganga river in a number of gunboats. Then they walked alongside the western facet of the river and arrived on the fringe of Ghatarchar. After that, with the assistance of Razakar commander Faiz Hossain and Razakar Moktar Mia carrying a burqa, the invading troops surrounded all the Ghatarchar village within the evening.

Around 6.30 a.m., Pakistani troopers with the assistance of Razakar Commander Faiz Hussain entered homes and opened fireplace focusing on the male members. At that point, the boys in several homes began working for canopy. But as the entire village was surrounded earlier, Ghatarchar villagers have been ambushed.

Pakistani troopers dragged the boys from the homes of Ghatarchar, together with these in Tan Para, Paschim Para, Purba Para and Bhawal Khan home, and introduced them out and made them stand in Khalpar (Bank of Canal) and Ghatarchar subject and carried out huge bloodbath. Around 57 villagers have been martyred immediately.

Shamser Ali, a narrative teller, misplaced his two brothers Araj Ali and Darbesh Ali within the Ghatarchar bloodbath, however fortunately he survived.

He mentioned, “Pakistan Army entered our house around 8 am. We were staying at home. They dragged my elder brother out of the house and beat him in front of the gate. My other brother was dragged to the field, made to stand in a line and was shot dead. When my elder brother was killed, I ran to save my life and hid in the forest near the house. I survived because they couldn’t see me.”

Shamser Ali added, “We buried 34 people together in one mass grave in Ghatarchar. There were only bodies and bodies around.”

The Ghatarchar bloodbath ended at 8 am. Then, round 8.30 am, the Pakistani invasion forces with the assistance of Razakars arrived on foot within the Bhawal village street subsequent to Ghatarchar.
First, a big contingent of Pakistani troops entered by way of Bhawal School and surrounded the northern and western sides of the village. Then the remainder of the invading military entered the village from the south facet. Seeing the Pakistani troopers, the villagers began working for his or her lives. The Razakars assured the villagers that they gained’t be harmed and requested them to remain at dwelling.

Most of the villagers fled, however the remaining believed the Razakars and went again dwelling. As quickly because the villagers reached to their houses, the invading troops began firing. Around 29 villagers have been brutally killed.

Omar Chan misplaced seven members of his household in Bhawal bloodbath. Fortunately, he survived that day, however even at this time, the brutality of the invaders and Razakars makes him shudder.

Omar Chan’s father, elder sister, elder sister’s husband, youthful brother, two nephews and one niece have been martyred in Bhawal village bloodbath. His sister Bishka Rani was shot seven occasions however she survived.

Bharti Rani, a resident of Bora Bhawal Rishipara, misplaced her husband Ramcharan and cousin Yudhu Das within the bloodbath.

She mentioned, “We were all running away after seeing the military in the morning. Then everyone gathered in the canal. The shooting started. My husband sustained two bullet wounds in both his legs. He pretended to be dead so that the military or Razakars would not suspect that he was alive. Some of us managed to escape. When the military left, the family informed that your husband and your cousin had been killed.”

The Pakistani invading forces and their collaborators didn’t cease after massacring individuals in Ghatarchar and Bhawal. With the assistance of the Razakars, they then set fireplace to the close by villages — Kathaltali and Guita — and burnt down a lot of the homes.

Credits

Reporter: Sahidul Hasan Khokon

Edited by: Tirtho Banerjee

Photo Research: Raman Pruthi

Interactive Producer: Raka Mukherjee

Interactive Developer: Vishal Rathour

Cover illustration: Vani Gupta