Adityapur massacre
Adityapur massacre (Bengali: আদিত্যপুর গণহত্যা) refers to the massacre of 63 Bengali Hindus by the Pakistani army during the Bangladesh Liberation War at Adityapur in East Pakistan. On 14 June 1971, the Pakistani army in collaboration with the Razakars, killed 63 Bengali Hindus in the village of Adityapur in Sylhet district.
| Adityapur massacre | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Native name | আদিত্যপুর গণহত্যা |
| Location | Adityapur, Balaganj, Sylhet, East Pakistan |
| Date | 14 June 1971 (UTC+6:00) |
| Target | Bengali Hindus |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Weapons | Rifles |
| Deaths | 63 |
| Perpetrators | Pakistani Army, Razakars |
Background
The village of Adityapur was under Balaganj Union within the jurisdiction of Balaganj police station in the district of Sylhet. Adityapur was a prosperous Hindu inhabited village on the banks of the Kushiara river. In 1971, when the Pakistani army launched the Operation Searchlight and began widespread massacre of the Hindu population, hundreds of thousands of Hindus began to flee to India. In Balaganj, the Hindus had stayed on instead of taking refuge in India.
Killings
On the early morning of 14 June, almost two hours before the sunrise, a contingent of Pakistani army consisting of 25 to 30 soldiers arrived in the village of Adityapur in four tanks.[1][2] Within half an hour the Pakistani army encircled the village with the help of local Razakars, even as the village was asleep. Then they announced through loudspeakers that they arrived in the village to constitute a local unit of the Peace Committee and distribute the dandy cards among the minority Hindus. The Hindus were forced out of their houses at gunpoint and made to assemble in front of the Adityapur Government Primary School. Sixty-five men were tied up and made to stand in front of a shooting squad.[1][2]
The Pakistani army held a discussion with local leader Abdul Ahad Chowdhury. After the discussion the captain ordered to fire. The soldiers fired at the captive Hindus, killed 63 of them instantly.[1] Two of them survived by feigning to be dead.[2] After that, the Razakars looted the village while the Pakistani army went after the women. One woman was taken captive in the house of Abdul Ahad Chowdhury.[1]
Aftermath
On 17 June, when the stench of the bodies became unbearable, the Razakars buried the corpses.[2] However, on 22 June, a group of freedom fighters under the command of M.A.G.Osmani exhumed the corpses and took them to Sylhet. The number of dead were counted and identified in front of national and international media and then brought back to Adityapur again. They were buried in front of the Adityapur Government Primary School.[1]
References
- Mohammad, Tajul (February 2005) [1989]. সিলেটে গণহত্যা [Genocide in Sylhet] (in Bengali) (Revised 2nd ed.). Dhaka: Sahitya Prakash. pp. 57–59. ISBN 984-465-416-5.
- আজ আদিত্যপুর গণহত্যা দিবস [Today is the Day of Adityapura Genocide]. Samakal (in Bengali). 14 June 2012. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2013.