Untold Facts

Dr. Arefin Siddque Please

Siddique is an Arabic term that in English version is truthful. Muslim parents have a fond of this name, even if it may not be family name originating in Muslim first Caliph Abu Baker Siddique. It does not necessarily mean though that one having the name given by parents would rightly stick to the prime quality of truthfulness, particularly, of late when the Muslims, no matter for whatever reasons or lame excuses, have fallen into the lowest of moral erosion.

The newly appointed V.C. of Dhaka University Dr. Siddique, to me, has began his new assignment, not with truthfulness but at least, in an issue with utter falsehood as the report I read through as verbatim of Dr. Siddique in a Dhaka English daily of the 17th January (09). The issue is a figure of the THREE MILLION of 1971.

The figure though oft quoted by some ill-informed or gullible lot, it is far away from the truth meant only for specific political propaganda.

To my knowledge, documents like New York based Small and Singer (1982), Harvard based Sisson and Rose (1990), London based A.M. Chowdhury (1996), humble myself (1996), etc. have ample authentic proofs and evidences that have conclusively established that the ‘Three million’ figure is utterly false. Lately, in 2005, Sharmila Bose, as well, through her well researched work further reinforced the falsehood of the figure. All such evidences were not advanced to condone any killing of any innocent person but then again who killed who remained another matter in imbroglio and also whose figure exceeded whom in terms of ethnic or language divide in the then East Pakistan or Bangladesh. Sisson and Rose, in particular, put up the figure of about 55,000 of Bengalis killed as against more than 100,00 of the non-Bengalis killed in infighting between divides, all being lawful residents of the then East Pakistan.

It is true that in war truth remains the first casualty. But should that stay so after about four decades? Should not one ask if Dr Siddique being the V.C of the premier institution of higher education as the Dhaka University is, no matter whether of the one time Oxford of the East or of the Mecca University, must resort to falsehood of the kind in his maiden discourse in public. I may, however, wish to expect that he had been mistakenly reported about the figure as his verbatim by less careful reporter in the print media.

— Prof. M.T. Hussain ( Retd)