Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts
Year: 2024
DOI:
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Echoes of Liberation: Mujibur Rahman’s Enduring Legacy in Bangladesh’s Contemporary Political Tapestry
Amit Saha, Nayandeep Sardar
ABSTRACT:
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of Bangladesh, fondly known as “Bangabandhu” (Friend of Bengal), left an indelible mark on the nation’s political landscape. This paper endeavors examining the lasting impact of his ideological framework on the contemporary Bangladeshi politics. Mujib’s political vision can be encapsulated in the four principles of nationalism, secularism, socialism and democracy. And these ideas continue to shape the political discourses and policy making efforts in the present-day Bangladesh as well. This paper attempts to analyze how Mujib’s concept of Bengali nationalism has evolved through the phases of globalization and intermittent domestic ethnic tensions. It also seeks to explore the ongoing debates on secularism in a predominantly Muslim nation and assess the implementation of Mujib’s ideas on social justice through the socio-economic policies pursued by different political dispensations in Bangladesh. Recently we have witnessed a bloody civil society upheaval led by the students in Bangladesh, as consequence of which the Awami League government was removed from power and Bangabandhu’s daughter Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign as prime minister and flee from the country. A palpable negative sentiment among the young generation to deny the legacy of Bangabandhu is also visible through the incidents of striking down of his statues and vandalizing his memorials in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. However, this paper seeks to emphasize that these acts of denial of the legacy of Bangabandhu is not consistent with the declared objectives of the recent students’ movement. Rather, there is a good deal of similarity between the ideas the students are trying to uphold and the core values of Mujib’s political ethos, which are of course liberal ideas. Thus, in the light of the new waves of political movements in Bangladesh there is an urgent need to revisit Mujib’s ideas to identify the underlying resemblances between his vision and the ideas of the contemporary political activists in Bangladesh. This paper intends to show that the roots of the type of political order that the new movement is claiming to establish today, i.e. a modern, secular, democratic and developed Bangladeshi nation, can be traced back into Bangabandhu’s vision of Bangladesh itself. This way the paper tries to explore the dynamic interplays between Mujibur Rahman’s vision and the current political realities, and in doing so this paper contributes to a deeper understanding of Bangladesh’s political trajectory and the enduring legacy of its founding father.
keywords: Bangladesh, Nationalism, Secularism, Social justice, Political legacy, Contemporary politics