Winston Churchill once said, “History is written by the victors”. The 1971 war has always been a victim of myths, perceptions, and false propaganda by these victors. No matter what the reality is, the people who come out to be victorious are the ones formulating the narratives and stories that are most likely perceived to be the truth by the masses. Such as in WW2, the narrative generated by the allies is the one that the world accepts without any question, as the truth rather than what the axis believed.
The 1971 war being called a “liberation war” itself is a part of deeply infested propaganda by India and its allies to further demonize West Pakistan as some kind of “aggressor” or “occupant” in East Pakistan (Now Bangladesh). This article will bust some of the major myths that are associated with the 1971 war and the Pakistan army and it will show a different side of the story that has often been ignored by the world all these years.
Agartala Case was a fabrication?
In February 1962, Sheikh Mujeeb the leader of Awami League was caught red-handed by the Pakistani government for conspiring against the state of Pakistan with the collaboration of Indian intelligence members. According to the reports, Sheikh Mujeeb and Indian intelligence were planning a conspiracy for a free and independent East Pakistan, which later came out to be true. The Agartala case was denied by supporters of Sheikh Mujeeb and Indian authorities and was called merely a conspiracy theory by the Pakistani establishment. According to the propaganda, Sheikh Mujeeb was deliberately framed as a traitor by West Pakistan.
In reality, Indian author Subir Bhaumik in his book, “The Agartala Doctrine: A Proactive Northeast in Indian Foreign Policy” explains that not only Agartala conspiracy was a reality but it was part of the official Indian foreign policy. Other Indian intellectuals and military personnel have also revealed the deep connection of the Agartala conspiracy with India.
Suppression of Bengali culture:
Another propaganda that is associated with the 1971 war is that West Pakistan had always suppressed and disliked the Bengali culture and imposed West Pakistani culture on East Pakistan. This also includes setting the Urdu language as the national language of Pakistan. Bearing in mind Urdu language is not in any way associated with any region of West Pakistan and its four provinces. Urdu was in fact lingua franca for the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent. It was also called the language for the army as it was a combination of different languages of the sub-continent and can easily be understood and spoken by almost all the people of the Indian subcontinent.
Therefore, associating Urdu as a West Pakistani language and relating it to the reason for the Bengali revolt against West Pakistan is not just untrue but factually and historically incorrect. Other than that, there was no animosity between the East Pakistanis and West Pakistanis before and after independence. Bengali artists like Firdousi Begum, Shehnaz Begum, Alamgir, Shahnam, and many others were loved and embraced by West Pakistanis and there were many intermarriages between East Pakistanis and West Pakistanis.
Gen Yahya Hated Bengalis:
Another common perception regarding the 1971 war is that General Yahya who was the Chief of Army Staff and President of Pakistan during that time had some personal grudges against the Bengali nation or hate the Bengali ethnicity. This perception is also widely accepted in Pakistan as well. According to Sarmila Bose’s book, “Dead Reckoning: Memories of 1971 Bangladesh War”, she narrates; “Mitha writes that Yahya, then GOC of 14 Division in Dhaka, did not tolerate West Pakistani officers talking condescendingly about East Pakistanis and told him to ensure that this kind of prejudice did not occur in his unit. When two West Pakistani officers did just that in the club one day, Mitha threw them out and Yahya posted them out the next day.” This is indeed an interesting fact that might surprise the Pakistanis as well.
90,000 Pakistan army soldiers surrendered?
The fabricated figure of 90,000 is often quoted by Indians in the context of the 1971 war. According to Indians, 90,000 Pakistani troops surrendered in East Pakistan in 1971. Dr. Junaid Ahmad in his book, “Creation of Bangladesh: Myth Exploded” writes that this figure is highly exaggerated and unreal and is in fact Indiana and Soviet Propaganda. The figures according to Gen Niazi were 34000 troops, and 11000 were the people that were included in police, rangers, and scouts making a total of only 45,000. The number that Indian authorities quote includes civilians, such as women, children, government officials, nurses, doctors, barbers, shoemakers, and many other unarmed people.
200,000 Bengali women were raped by Pakistan army?
Another horrific figure that is quoted in the context of the 1971 war is that according to Indian and Bangladeshi stakeholders, the Pakistan army is responsible for raping 200,000 innocent Bengali women during the war. According to Sarmila Bose, “It does not need any elaborate argument to see that these figures are obviously highly exaggerated. So much damage could not have been caused by the entire strength of the Pakistan army then stationed in East Pakistan, even if it had nothing else to do”.
Genocide of 3 million Bengalis:
To believe that the Pakistan army killed over three million innocent unarmed Bengali civilians just because of their ethnicity is itself a ridiculous accusation yet Indian and Bengali masses believe it to be the truth. Experts and historians believe that the figure of three million that is often written in books, articles, and newspapers has no base to it. There is no scientific survey or research on the matter. There is absolutely no on-ground evidence that suggests three million Bengalis were mercilessly massacred by the Pakistan army during the 1971 war.
In January 1972 Sheikh Mujeeb set up a committee to support his three million figure claims. As expected, no further information on the committee’s findings was close to the figure of three million. The myth of three million stayed a myth and no official government report backs it up. Bengali intellectuals like Sarmila Bose, Chowdhury Abdul Mumin, and many others also deny the credibility of this highly exaggerated false figure.
There are many more myths and disinformation regarding the 1971 war which is to be uncovered. These are one of the few major false perceptions that have been imposed by the so-called victors onto the masses of the Indian subcontinent. False narratives are built and proliferated in such a beautiful and sophisticated manner that it is hard to deny them despite being so ridiculous and untrue in nature. Today, truth has become relative and subjective. Propaganda tools have become so modernized that it is hard to distinguish a truth from a lie. But one must always be optimistic as truth always prevails in the end.
