Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
জাতির জনক বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান
Personal details
Born
17 March 1920
Tungipara, Bengal Presidency, British India (now in Bangladesh)
Died
15 August 1975 (aged 55),Dhaka, Bangladesh
Nationality
Bangladeshi
Political party
Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League (1975)
Other political affiliations
All-India Muslim League (Before 1949)
Awami League (1949–1975)
Spouse(s)
Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib
Children
Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Rehana
Sheikh Kamal
Sheikh Jamal
Sheikh Rasel
Alma mater
Maulana Azad College , University of Dhaka
Religion
Islam
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Bengali: শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান Shekh Mujibur Rôhman) (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975) was the founding leader of Bangladesh. He was the head of state (President) of the Provisional Government of Bangladesh and became the Prime Minister of Bangladesh in 1972. He is popularly referred to as Sheikh Mujib or simply Mujib, with the honorary title of Bangabandhu (বঙ্গবন্ধু Bôngobondhu, "Friend of Bengal"). He is also known as the Father of the Nation (Bengali: জাতির জনক) of Bangladesh. His daughter Sheikh Hasina is the current Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
Mujib was born in Bengal during the British Raj in 1920. He studied in Islamia College (Calcutta) and University of Dhaka; and was a confidant of A. K. Fazlul Huq and H. S. Suhrawardy. As a student leader, he rose within the ranks of the Awami League as a charismatic and forceful orator. An advocate of socialism, he became popular for his opposition to the ethnic and institutional discrimination of Bengalis in the new state of Pakistan. At the heightening of sectional tensions in 1966, he outlined a six-point autonomy plan. He strongly opposed the military dictatorship of the West Pakistani Field Marshal Ayub Khan and was often jailed for his political beliefs.
Mujib led the Awami League to win the first democratic election of Pakistan in 1970. Despite gaining a majority, the League was not invited to form a government. As mass protests erupted across East Pakistan demanding self-determination, Mujib envisioned a struggle for independence during a landmark speech on 7 March 1971. He announced a civil disobedience movement to press for convening the National Assembly. On 26 March 1971, the Pakistan Army launched Operation Searchlight to suppress the tide of Bengali nationalism. Mujib was arrested and flown to military custody in West Pakistan. The Bangladesh Liberation War began as a declaration of independence was proclaimed on his behalf by Major Ziaur Rahman. Lasting for nine months, the liberation war ended on 16 December 1971 with the surrender of Pakistan to Bangladesh-India Allied Forces. Under international pressure, Pakistan released Mujib on 8 January 1972, after which he was flown by the Royal Air Force to a million-strong jubilant homecoming in Dhaka.
As Prime Minister in post-independence Bangladesh, Mujib struggled as an administrator. Despite adopting a constitution proclaiming a secular democracy, the country faced challenges of rampant unemployment, poverty and corruption. A famine took place in 1974. Mujib led Bangladesh to join the Commonwealth and the OIC. Amid rising political agitation in 1975, he established a one party state, assumed the presidency and curtailed freedom of the press. On 15 August 1975, Mujib and most of his family were assassinated by renegade army officers during a military coup. The country was brought under a military-backed political regime, which lasted until the restoration of parliamentary democracy in 1990.
Early life
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was born in Tungipara, a village in Gopalganj District in the province of Bengal in British India, to Sheikh Lutfur Rahman, a serestadar, an officer responsible for record-keeping at the Gopalganj civil court. He was born into a native Bengali family as the third child in a family of four daughters and two sons. In 1929, Mujib entered into class three at Gopalganj Public School, and two years later, class four at Madaripur Islamia High School.[3] However, Mujib withdrew from school in 1934 to undergo eye surgery, and returned to school only after four years, owing to the severity of the surgery and slow recovery.[citation needed] At the age of eighteen, Mujib married Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib. Together they had two daughters—Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana—and three sons—Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal, and Sheikh Rasel.
Mujib became politically active when he joined the All India Muslim Students Federation in 1940. He enrolled at the Islamia College (now Maulana Azad College), a well-respected college affiliated to the University of Calcutta to study law, and entered student politics there.
He joined the Bengal Muslim League in 1943. During this period, Mujib worked actively for the League's cause of a separate Muslim state of Pakistan, and in 1946 he went on to become general secretary of the Islamia College Students Union. M. Bhaskaran Nair describes that Rahman "emerged as the most powerful man in the party" because of his proximity to Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy.
After obtaining his degree in 1947, Mujib was one of the Muslim politicians working under Suhrawardy during the communal violence that broke out in Calcutta, in 1946, just before the partition of India.
After the Partition of India, Rahman chose to stay in the newly created Pakistan. On his return to what became known as East Pakistan, he enrolled in the University of Dhaka to study law and founded the East Pakistan Muslim Students' League. He became one of the most prominent student political leaders in the province. During these years, Mujib developed an affinity for socialism as the solution to mass poverty, unemployment and poor living conditions.[citation needed] On 26 January 1949 the government announced that Urdu would be the only official state language of Pakistan, although Bengali was the majority language in East Pakistan. Though still in jail, Mujib encouraged fellow activist groups to launch strikes and protests; he undertook a hunger strike for 13 days.
Following the declaration of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the province chief minister Khwaja Nazimuddin in 1948 that the people of East Bengal would have to adopt Urdu as the state language, protests broke out amongst the population. Mujib led the Muslim Students' League in organising strikes and protests, and was arrested along with Khaleque Nawaz Khan and Shamsul Haque by police on 11 March. The sustained protest from students and political activists led to the immediate release of Mujib and the others. Mujib was expelled from the university and arrested again in 1949 for attempting to organise the menial and clerical staff in an agitation over workers' rights.
Early political career
Mujib left the Muslim League to join Suhrawardy, Maulana Bhashani and Yar Mohammad Khan in the formation of the Awami Muslim League, the predecessor of the Awami League. He was elected joint secretary of its East Bengal unit in 1949. While Suhrawardy worked to build a larger coalition of East Bengali and socialist parties, Mujib focused on expanding the grassroots organisation.[citation needed] In 1953, he was made the party's general secretary, and elected to the East Bengal Legislative Assembly on a United Front coalition ticket in 1954.[citation needed] Serving briefly as the minister for agriculture during A. K. Fazlul Huq's government, Mujib was briefly arrested for organising a protest of the central government's decision to dismiss the United Front ministry.
He was elected to the second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and served from 1955 to 1958. The government proposed to dissolve the provinces in favour of an amalgamation of the western provinces of the Dominion of Pakistan in a plan called One Unit; at the same time the central government would be strengthened. Under One Unit, the western provinces were merged as West Pakistan during the creation of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in 1956. That year East Bengal was renamed as East Pakistan as part of One Unit at the same time. Mujib demanded that the Bengali people's ethnic identity be respected and that a popular verdict should decide the question of naming and of official language:
Sir [President of the Constituent Assembly], you will see that they want to place the word "East Pakistan" instead of "East Bengal." We had demanded so many times that you should use Bengal instead of Pakistan. The word "Bengal" has a history, has a tradition of its own. You can change it only after the people have been consulted. So far as the question of One Unit is concerned it can come in the constitution. Why do you want it to be taken up just now? What about the state language, Bengali? We will be prepared to consider one-unit with all these things. So I appeal to my friends on that side to allow the people to give their verdict in any way, in the form of referendum or in the form of plebiscite.
In 1956, Mujib entered a second coalition government as minister of industries, commerce, labour, anti-corruption and village aid. He resigned in 1957 to work full-time for the party organisation.
In 1958 General Ayub Khan suspended the constitution and imposed martial law. Mujib was arrested for organising resistance and imprisoned till 1961. After his release from prison, Mujib started organising an underground political body called the Swadhin Bangal Biplobi Parishad (Free Bangla Revolutionary Council), comprising student leaders, to oppose the regime of Ayub Khan. They worked for increased political power for Bengalis and the independence of East Pakistan. He was briefly arrested again in 1962 for organising protests.
Leader of Pakistan
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Announcing 6 Points At Lahore
Main article: Six point movement
Following Suhrawardy's death in 1963, Mujib came to head the Awami League, which became one of the largest political parties in Pakistan. The party had dropped the word "Muslim" from its name in a shift towards secularism and a broader appeal to non-Muslim communities. Mujib was one of the key leaders to rally opposition to President Ayub Khan's Basic Democracies plan, the imposition of martial law and the one-unit scheme, which centralised power and merged the provinces. Working with other political parties, he supported opposition candidate Fatima Jinnah against Ayub Khan in the 1964 election. Mujib was arrested two weeks before the election, charged with sedition and jailed for a year. In these years, there was rising discontent in East Pakistan over the atrocities committed by the Pakistani Armed Forces against Bengalis and the neglect of the issues and needs of East Pakistan by the ruling regime. Despite forming a majority of the population, the Bengalis were poorly represented in Pakistan's civil services, police and military.[citation needed] There were also conflicts between the allocation of revenues and taxation.[citation needed] The 1965 war between India and Pakistan also revealed the markable vulnerability of East Pakistan compared to West Pakistan.
Unrest over continuing denial of democracy spread across Pakistan and Mujib intensified his opposition to the disbandment of provinces. In 1966, Mujib proclaimed a 6-point plan titled Our Charter of Survival at a national conference of opposition political parties at Lahore,[2] in which he demanded self-government and considerable political, economic and defence autonomy for East Pakistan in a Pakistani federation with a weak central government.[10] According to his plan:
The constitution should provide for a Federation of Pakistan in its true sense on the Lahore Resolution and the parliamentary form of government with supremacy of a legislature directly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise.
The federal government should deal with only two subjects: defence and foreign affairs, and all other residuary subjects shall be vested in the federating states.
Two separate, but freely convertible currencies for two wings should be introduced; or if this is not feasible, there should be one currency for the whole country, but effective constitutional provisions should be introduced to stop the flight of capital from East to West Pakistan. Furthermore, a separate banking reserve should be established and separate fiscal and monetary policy be adopted for East Pakistan.
The power of taxation and revenue collection shall be vested in the federating units and the federal centre will have no such power. The federation will be entitled to a share in the state taxes to meet its expenditures.
There should be two separate accounts for the foreign exchange earnings of the two wings; the foreign exchange requirements of the federal government should be met by the two wings equally or in a ratio to be fixed; indigenous products should move free of duty between the two wings, and the constitution should empower the units to establish trade links with foreign countries.
East Pakistan should have a separate militia or paramilitary forces.
Mujib's points catalysed public support across East Pakistan, launching what some historians have termed the 6-point movement – recognised as the definitive gambit for autonomy and rights of Bengalis in Pakistan.[citation needed] Mujib obtained the broad support of Bengalis, including the Hindu and other religious communities in East Pakistan. However, his demands were considered radical in West Pakistan and interpreted as thinly veiled separatism. The proposals alienated West Pakistani people and politicians, as well as non-Bengalis and Muslim fundamentalists in East Pakistan.
Mujib was arrested by the army and after two years in jail, an official sedition trial in a military court opened. Widely known as the Agartala Conspiracy Case, Mujib and 34 Bengali military officers were accused by the government of colluding with Indian government agents in a scheme to divide Pakistan and threaten its unity, order and national security. The plot was alleged to have been planned in the city of Agartala, in the Indian state of Tripura. The outcry and unrest over Mujib's arrest and the charge of sedition against him destabilised East Pakistan amidst large protests and strikes. Various Bengali political and student groups added demands to address the issues of students, workers and the poor, forming a larger "11-point plan." The government caved to the mounting pressure, dropped the charges on February 22, 1969 and unconditionally released Mujib the following day. He returned to East Pakistan as a public hero.[citation needed] He was given a mass reception on February 23, at Racecourse ground and conferred with the title 'Bangabandhu', meaning 'Friend of the Bengal'.
Joining an all-parties conference convened by Ayub Khan in 1969, Mujib demanded the acceptance of his six points and the demands of other political parties and walked out following its rejection. On 5 December 1969 Mujib made a declaration at a public meeting held to observe the death anniversary of Suhrawardy that henceforth East Pakistan would be called "Bangladesh":
There was a time when all efforts were made to erase the word "Bangla" from this land and its map. The existence of the word "Bangla" was found nowhere except in the term Bay of Bengal. I on behalf of Pakistan announce today that this land will be called "Bangladesh" instead of East Pakistan.
Mujib's declaration heightened tensions across the country. The West Pakistani politicians and the military began to see him as a separatist leader. His assertion of Bengali cultural and ethnic identity also re-defined the debate over regional autonomy. Many scholars and observers believed the Bengali agitation emphasised the rejection of the Two-Nation Theory – the case upon which Pakistan had been created – by asserting the ethno-cultural identity of Bengalis as a nation. Mujib was able to galvanise support throughout East Pakistan, which was home to a majority of the national population, thus making him one of the most powerful political figures in the Indian subcontinent. It was following his 6-point plan that Mujib was increasingly referred to by his supporters as "Bangabandhu" (literally meaning "Friend of Bengal" in Bengali).
1970 Elections and Independence
A major coastal cyclone struck East Pakistan on 12 November 1970, leaving hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced. Bengalis were outraged and unrest began because of what was considered the weak and ineffective response of the central government to the disaster. Public opinion and political parties in East Pakistan blamed the governing authorities as intentionally negligent. The West Pakistani politicians attacked the Awami League for allegedly using the crisis for political gain. The dissatisfaction led to divisions within the civil services, police and Pakistani Armed Forces.
In the Pakistani general elections held on 7 December 1970, the Awami League under Mujib's leadership won a massive majority in the provincial legislature, and all but two of East Pakistan's quota of seats in the new National Assembly, thus forming a clear majority.
The largest and most successful party in the western wing of the nation was the Pakistan Peoples Party headed by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. He was completely opposed to Mujib's demand for greater autonomy.Bhutto threatened to boycott the assembly and oppose the government if Mujib was invited by Yahya Khan (then president of Pakistan) to form the next government and demanded inclusion of the PPP. Much of the Pakistani military and the Islamic political parties opposed Mujib's becoming Pakistan's prime minister. At the time neither Mujib nor the Awami League had explicitly advocated political independence for East Pakistan, but smaller nationalist groups were demanding independence for Bangladesh.
Bhutto feared civil war, and sent a secret message to Mujib and his inner circle to arrange a meeting with them. Hassan met with Mujib and persuaded him to form a coalition government with Bhutto. They decided that Bhutto would serve as President, with Mujib as Prime minister. These developments took place secretly and none of the Pakistan Armed Forces personnel were kept informed. Meanwhile, Bhutto increased the pressure on Yahya Khan to take a stand on dissolving the government.
Liberation War, 1971
Following political deadlock, Yahya Khan delayed the convening of the assembly – a move seen by Bengalis as a plan to deny Mujib's party, which formed a majority, from taking charge. It was on 7 March 1971 that Mujib called for independence and asked the people to launch a major campaign of civil disobedience and organised armed resistance at a mass gathering of people held at the Race Course Ground in Dhaka.
The struggle now is the struggle for our emancipation; the struggle now is the struggle for our independence. Joy Bangla!..Since we have given blood, we will give more blood. God-willing, the people of this country will be liberated ... Turn every house into a fort. Face (the enemy) with whatever you have.
Following a last-ditch attempt to foster agreement, Yahya Khan declared martial law, banned the Awami League and ordered the army to arrest Mujib and other Bengali leaders and activists.The army launched Operation Searchlight to curb the political and civil unrest, fighting the nationalist militias that were believed to have received training in India. Speaking on radio even as the army began its crackdown, Mujib asked his fellows to create resistance against Pakiskani Army of occupation by a telegraph at midnight on 26 March 1971
[The] Pakistan Army have suddenly attacked the Pilkhana EPR Headquarter and tha Rajarbag Police Line as well as killed many innocents in Dhaka. The battle has started in various places of Dhaka and Chittagong. I am asking help to all the nations of this world. Our freedom fighters are valiantly fighting against the foes to save their motherland. In the name of Almighty Allah my last request and order to you all is to fight for independence till death. Ask your brothers of Police, EPR, Bengal Regiment and Ansar to fight with you. No compromise, the victory is ours. Execute the last foe from our holy motherland. Carry my message to all the leaders, activists and the other patriots from the every corner of the country. May Allah bless you all. Joy Bangla. – from Shadhinota Shongrame Bangali by Aftab Ahmad
Sheikh Mujib was arrested and taken to Pakistan after midnight via Tejgaon international airport on a PAF C-130 flight right under the noses of ATC Officer Squadron Leader Khaja, Senior Operations Officer Wing Commander Khademul Bashar and Director of Airport and Flight Security Squadron Leader M. Hamidullah Khan. All were on duty that night due to the state of emergency. Mujib was moved to West Pakistan and kept under heavy guard in a jail near Faisalabad (then Lyallpur).Many other League politicians avoided arrest by fleeing to India and other countries. Pakistani general Rahimuddin Khan was appointed to preside over Mujib's military court case in Faisalabad, the proceedings of which have never been made public.
The Pakistani army's campaign to restore order soon degenerated into a rampage of terror and bloodshed. With militias known as Razakars, the army targeted Bengali intellectuals, politicians and union leaders, as well as ordinary civilians. Due to deteriorating situation, large numbers of Hindus fled across the border to the neighbouring Indian states of West Bengal, Assam and Tripura.The East Bengali army and police regiments soon revolted and League leaders formed a government in exile in Kolkata under Tajuddin Ahmad, a politician close to Mujib. A major insurgency led by the Mukti Bahini (Freedom Fighters) arose across East Pakistan. Despite international pressure, the Pakistani government refused to release Mujib and negotiate with him. Most of the Mujib family was kept under house arrest during this period. General Osmani was the key military commanding officer in the Mukti Bahini, which was a part of the struggle between the state forces and the nationalist militia during the war that came to be known as the Bangladesh Liberation War. Following Indian intervention in December 1971, the Pakistani army surrendered to the joint force of Bengali Mukti Bahini and Indian Army, and the League leadership created a government in Dhaka.
Upon assuming the presidency after Yahya Khan's resignation, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto responded to international pressure and released Mujib on 8 January 1972. He was then flown to London where he met with British Prime Minister Edward Heath and addressed the international media. Mujib then flew to New Delhi on a Royal Air Force plane given by the British government to take him back to Dhaka. In New Delhi, he was received by Indian President Varahagiri Venkata Giri and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as well as the entire Indian cabinet and chiefs of armed forces. Delhi was given a festive look as Mujib and Indira addressed a huge crowd where he publicly expressed his gratitude to Indira Gandhi and "the best friends of my people, the people of India. From New Delhi, Sheikh Mujib flew back to Dhaka on the RAF jet where he was received by a massive and emotional sea of people at Tejgaon Airport."
Governing Bangladesh
Rahman briefly assumed the provisional presidency and later took office as the prime minister.
A new country Bangladesh begins with a lot of 'rampage and rape of Bangladesh economy' by Pakistani occupation force.
According to Time Magazine USA 17-January −1972 "In the aftermath of the Pakistani army's rampage last March, a special team of inspectors from the World Bank observed that some cities looked "like the morning after a nuclear at tack." Since then, the destruction has only been magnified. An estimated 6,000,000 homes have been destroyed, and nearly 1,400,000 farm families have been left without tools or animals to work their lands. Transportation and communications systems are totally disrupted. Roads are damaged, bridges out and inland waterways blocked. The rape of the country continued right up until the Pakistani army surrendered a month ago. In the last days of the war, West Pakistani-owned businesses—which included nearly every commercial enterprise in the country—remitted virtually all their funds to the West. Pakistan International Airlines left exactly 117 rupees ($16) in its account at the port city of Chittagong. The army also destroyed bank notes and coins, so that many areas now suffer from a severe shortage of ready cash. Private cars were picked up off the streets or confiscated from auto dealers and shipped to the West before the ports were closed."
The politicians elected in 1970 formed the provisional parliament of the new state. The Mukti Bahini and other militias amalgamated to form a new Bangladeshi army to which Indian forces transferred control on 17 March. Mujib described the fallout of the war as the "biggest human disaster in the world," claiming the deaths of as many as 3 million people and the rape of more than 200,000 women.
The government faced serious challenges, which including the rehabilitation of millions of people displaced in 1971, organising the supply of food, health aids and other necessities. The effects of the 1970 cyclone had not worn off, and the state's economy had immensely deteriorated by the conflict.[citation needed] There was also violence against non-Bengalis and groups who were believed to have assisted the Pakistani forces. By the end of the year, thousands of Bengalis arrived from Pakistan, and thousands of non-Bengalis migrated to Pakistan; and yet many thousands remained in refugee camps.[citation needed]
After Bangladesh achieved recognition from major countries, Mujib helped Bangladesh enter into the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement.[citation needed] He travelled to the United States, the United Kingdom and other European nations to obtain humanitarian and developmental assistance for the nation. He signed a treaty of friendship with India, which pledged extensive economic and humanitarian assistance and began training Bangladesh's security forces and government personnel.Mujib forged a close friendship with Indira Gandhi,[strongly praising India's decision to intercede, and professed admiration and friendship for India.
He charged the provisional parliament to write a new constitution, and proclaimed the four fundamental principles of "nationalism, secularism, democracy and socialism," which would come to be known as "Mujibism." Mujib nationalised hundreds of industries and companies as well as abandoned land and capital and initiated land reform aimed at helping millions of poor farmers.Major efforts were launched to rehabilitate an estimated 10 million refugees. The economy began recovering and a famine was prevented. A constitution was proclaimed in 1973 and elections were held, which resulted in Mujib and his party gaining power with an absolute majority.[2] He further outlined state programmes to expand primary education, sanitation, food, healthcare, water and electric supply across the country. A five-year plan released in 1973 focused state investments into agriculture, rural infrastructure and cottage industries.
Although the state was committed to secularism, Mujib soon began moving closer to political Islam through state policies as well as personal conduct. He revived the Islamic Academy (which had been banned in 1972 for suspected collusion with Pakistani forces) and banned the production and sale of alcohol and banned the practice of gambling, which had been one of the major demands of Islamic groups. Mujib sought Bangladesh's membership in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and the Islamic Development Bank and made a significant trip to Lahore in 1974 to attend the OIC summit, which helped repair relations with Pakistan to an extent. In his public appearances and speeches, Mujib made increased usage of Islamic greetings, slogans and references to Islamic ideologies. In his final years, Mujib largely abandoned his trademark "Joy Bangla" salutation for "Khuda Hafez" preferred by religious Muslims. He also declared a common amnesty to the suspected war criminals in some conditions to get the support of far right groups as the communists were not happy with Mujib's regime. He declared, " I believe that the brokers, who assisted the Pakistanis during the liberation war has realized their faults. I hope they will involve themselves in the development of the country forgetting all their misdeeds. Those who were arrested and jailed in the Collaborator act should be freed before the 16 December 1974.".
In 1974, Bangladesh experienced the deadliest famine ever, which killed around 30,000 Bangladeshi people from hunger. The Bangladesh famine of 1974 is a major source of discontent against Mujib's government.
জাতির পিতা বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিবুর রহমানের জীবনী
১৭ই মার্চ, ১৯২০ সালে গোপালগঞ্জের টুঙ্গিপাড়ায় শেখ লুৎফুর রহমান এবং সায়রা বেগমের ঘরে জন্ম নেন জাতির জনক বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান। ছয় ভাইবোনের মধ্যে তিনি ছিলেন তৃতীয়। গোপালগঞ্জ পাবলিক স্কুল ও কলকাতা ইসলামিয়া কলেজে পড়াশনা শেষে ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে স্নাতক পাশ করেন। ১৮ বছর বয়সে বেগম ফজিলাতুন্নেসার সাথে তাঁর বিয়ে হয়। তাদের ২ মেয়ে - শেখ হাসিনা ও শেখ রেহানা এবং তিন ছেলে- শেখ কামাল, শেখ জামাল ও শেখ রাসেল।
অল্পবয়স থেকেই তাঁর রাজনৈতিক প্রতিভার প্রকাশ ঘটতে থাকে। ১৯৪০ সালে তিনি নিখিল ভারত মুসলিম লীগের ছাত্র সংগঠন নিখিল ভারত মুসলিম ছাত্র ফেডারেশনে যোগ দেন। কট্টরপন্থী এই সংগঠন ছেড়ে ১৯৪৩ সালে যোগ দেন উদারপন্থী ও প্রগতিশীল সংগঠন বেঙ্গল মুসলিম লীগে। এখানেই সান্নিধ্যে আসেন হুসেইন শহীদ সোহরাওয়ার্দীর। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে থাকাকালীন সময়ে রক্ষণশীল কট্টরপন্থী নিখিল ভারত মুসলিম ছাত্র ফেডারেশনের কর্তৃত্ব খর্ব করতে তিনি প্রতিষ্ঠা করেন পূর্ব পাকিস্তান মুসলিম ছাত্র লীগ।
ভাষা আন্দোলনের সময় রাজনৈতিক নেতা হিসেবে অত্যন্ত গুরুত্বপূর্ণ ভূমিকা পালন করেন শেখ মুজিব। ১৯৪৮ সালে ভাষার প্রশ্নে তাঁর নেতৃত্বেই প্রথম প্রতিবাদ এবং ছাত্র ধর্মঘট শুরু হয় যা চূড়ান্ত রূপ নেয় ১৯৫২ সালের ২১ ফেব্রুয়ারিতে।
পঞ্চাশের দশক তাঁর রাজনৈতিক উত্থানের কাল। ধীরে ধীরে তিনি হয়ে উঠেন দূরদর্শীতা এবং প্রজ্ঞাসম্পন্ন এক কুশলী রাজনৈতিক নেতা। এসময় শেখ মুজিব মুসলিম লীগ ছেড়ে দেন এবং হোসেন সোহরাওয়ার্দী এবং মাওলানা ভাসানীর সাথে মিলে গঠন করেন আওয়ামী মুসলিম লীগ। তিনি দলের প্রথম যুগ্ম সাধারণ সম্পাদক নির্বাচিত হন। ১৯৫৩ সালে তিনি দলের সাধারণ সম্পাদকের দায়িত্ব পান। ১৯৫৪ সালের সাধারণ নির্বাচনে জয়ী হয়ে যুক্তফ্রন্ট সরকারের কৃষি মন্ত্রী হন মুজিব। ১৯৫৬ সালে কোয়ালিশন সরকারের মন্ত্রিসভায় শিল্প ও বাণিজ্য মন্ত্রণালয়ের দায়িত্ব পান তিনি।
১৯৬৩ সালে হোসেন সোহরাওয়ার্দীর মৃত্যুর পর আওয়ামী মুসলিম লীগের সভাপতি নির্বাচিত হন শেখ মুজিব। তিনি ছিলেন আইয়ুব খানের মৌলিক গণতন্ত্র তত্ত্বের কট্টর সমালোচক। ১৯৬৬ সালে লাহোরে অনুষ্ঠিত বিরোধী দলগুলোর জাতীয় সম্মেলনে শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান ঐতিহাসিক ৬ দফা দাবি উত্থাপন করেন। এই ছয় দফা ছিল পূর্ব পাকিস্তানের স্বায়ত্ত্বশাসনের রূপরেখা।
মুজিবের ৬ দফার প্রতি জনগণের ব্যাপক সমর্থনে ভীত হয়ে তৎকালীন পাকিস্তানি শাসকগোষ্ঠী আগরতলা ষড়যন্ত্র মামলায় গ্রেপ্তার শেখ মুজিবকে। এতে ক্ষুব্ধ হয়ে ওঠে বাংলার সমস্ত জনগণ। জনরোষের কাছে নতি স্বীকার করে এক পর্যায়ে তাঁকে মুক্তি দিতে বাধ্য হয় শোষকগোষ্ঠী। ১৯৬৯ সালের ২৩ ফেব্রুয়ারি ঢাকার রেসকোর্স ময়দানে কেন্দ্রীয় ছাত্র সংগ্রাম পরিষদের উদ্যোগে শেখ মুজিবুর রহমানকে গণসম্বর্ধনা দেওয়া হয়৷সেখানেই উত্থাপিত হয় এগার দফা দাবি যার মধ্যে ছয় দফার সবগুলোই দফাই অন্তর্ভুক্ত ছিল। লাখো মানুষের এই জমায়েতে শেখ মুজিবুর রহমানকে ‘বঙ্গবন্ধু’ উপাধিতে ভূষিত করা হয়৷
১৯৬৯ সালের ৫ ডিসেম্বর আয়োজিত এক জনসভায় বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিব পূর্ব বাংলার নামকরণ করেন ‘বাংলাদেশ’। তিনি বলেন, “একসময় এদেশের বুক হইতে, মানচিত্রের পৃষ্ঠা হইতে ‘বাংলা’ কথাটির সর্বশেষ চিহ্নটুকুও চিরতরে মুছিয়া ফেলার চেষ্টা করা হইয়াছে। ... একমাত্র ‘বঙ্গোপসাগর’ ছাড়া আর কোন কিছুর নামের সঙ্গে ‘বাংলা’ কথাটির অস্তিত্ব খুঁজিয়া পাওয়া যায় নাই। ... জনগণের পক্ষ হইতে আমি ঘোষণা করিতেছি- আজ হইতে পাকিস্তানের পূর্বাঞ্চলীয় প্রদেশটির নাম পূর্ব পাকিস্তানের পরিবর্তে শুধুমাত্র বাংলাদেশ”।
১৯৭০ সালের ৭ ডিসেম্বরে সাধারণ নির্বাচনে শেখ মুজিবের নেতৃত্বে আওয়ামী লীগ প্রাদেশিক আইনসভায় নিরঙ্কুশ সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠতা অর্জন করে। আওয়ামী লীগ তৎকালীন পূর্ব পাকিস্তানে জাতীয় পরিষদের ১৬৯টি আসনের মধ্যে ১৬৭টি আসন এবং প্রাদেশিক পরিষদের ৩১০টি আসনের মধ্যে ৩০৫টি আসন লাভ করে। কিন্তু পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানি শাসকগোষ্ঠী মুজিবের স্বায়ত্বশাসনের নীতির পুরোপুরি বিপক্ষে ছিলো। আওয়ামী লীগের সরকার গঠন ঠেকাতে প্রেসিডেন্ট ইয়াহিয়া খান সংসদের অধিবেশন ডাকা নিয়ে টালবাহানা শুরু করেন। শেখ মুজিব তখনই বুঝে যান যে, পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানি শাসকদের দুঃশাসনের অবসান ঘটাতে লড়াইয়ের কোনো বিকল্প নেই।
১৯৭১ সালের ৭ই মার্চ রেসকোর্স ময়দানে এক ঐতিহাসিক ভাষণে বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান স্বাধীনতার ডাক দেন। রেসকোর্সের জনসমুদ্রে বঙ্গবন্ধু ঘোষণা করেন “এবারের সংগ্রাম আমাদের মুক্তির সংগ্রাম, এবারের সংগ্রাম স্বাধীনতার সংগ্রাম”। ঐতিহাসিক এ ভাষণে জাতির জনক বঙ্গবন্ধু বাঙালি জাতিকে শৃংখল মুক্তির আহ্বান জানিয়ে ঘোষণা করেন, “রক্ত যখন দিয়েছি, রক্ত আরো দেবো। এদেশের মানুষকে মুক্ত করে ছাড়বো ইনশাল্লাহ্। ... প্রত্যেকে ঘরে ঘরে দূর্গ গড়ে তোলো। যার যা কিছু আছে তাই নিয়েই শত্রুর মোকাবিলা করতে হবে”।
বঙ্গবন্ধুর ডাকে উত্তাল হয়ে ওঠে সারা বাংলা। মুজিবের নেতৃত্বে বাঙ্গালি জাতির এই জাগরণে ভীত ইয়াহিয়া খান সামরিক আইন জারি করেন, নিষিদ্ধ করেন আওয়ামী লীগকে এবং শেখ মুজিবকে গ্রেপ্তারের নির্দেশ দেন।
এরপর আসে ২৫ মার্চ, ১৯৭১। রাতের অন্ধকারে নিরীহ নিরস্ত্র বাঙালীর ওপর শকুনের মতো ঝাঁপিয়ে পড়ে পাকিস্তানি সেনারা; শুরু করে অপারেশন সার্চলাইট নামে ইতিহাসের জঘন্যতম হত্যাকান্ড।অশীতিপর বৃদ্ধ থেকে কোলের শিশু- কেউ রক্ষা পায়না পাক হায়েনাদের নারকীয়তা থেকে। মুজিবকে গ্রেপ্তার করে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয় পশ্চিম পাকিস্তানে। অবশ্য তার আগেই, পাক বাহিনীর অভিযান শুরু হলে ২৬ মার্চ প্রথম প্রহরে শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতার ঘোষণা দেন এবং জনগণকে সর্বাত্মক আন্দোলনে সামিল হতে আহ্বান জানান।
১৯৭১ সালের ১৭ই এপ্রিল গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশের প্রথম সরকার গঠিত হয় এবং শেখ মুজিবকে রাষ্ট্রপতি করা হয়। তাঁর অনুপস্থিতিতে অস্থায়ী রাষ্ট্রপতির দায়িত্ব পালন করেন সৈয়দ নজরুল ইসলাম। এ সরকারের অধীনেই গঠিত হয় মুক্তিবাহিনী এবং শুরু হয় পাক সেনাদের প্রতিহত করার পালা। দীর্ঘ নয় মাসের রক্তক্ষয়ী লড়াইয়ের পর, ৩০ লক্ষ বাঙ্গালীর প্রাণের বিনিময়ে অবশেষে আসে বিজয়। ১৬ ডিসেম্বর সেই সোহরাওয়ার্দী উদ্যান যেখান থেকে স্বাধীনতা সংগ্রামের ডাক দিয়েছিলেন বঙ্গবন্ধু, সেখানেই বাংলাদেশ-ভারত মিত্রবাহিনীর কাছে আত্মসমর্পন করে পাকিস্তানী সেনাবাহিনী। পৃথিবীর মানচিত্রে জন্ম নেয় বাংলাদেশ নামের নতুন একটি দেশ।
১৯৭২ সালের ১০ জানুয়ারি বঙ্গবন্ধু ফিরে আসেন তাঁর প্রিয় মাতৃভূমিতে, তাঁর স্বপ্নের স্বাধীন দেশে। স্বাধীনতার স্বপ্নদ্রষ্টা, জাতির জনককে বরণ করতে লাখো মানুষের ঢল নামে বিমানবন্দরে। দেশে ফিরেই যুদ্ধ বিধ্বস্ত দেশ পুনর্গঠনে ঝাঁপিয়ে পড়েন বঙ্গবন্ধু । মানবিক বিপর্যয় মোকাবিলায় আন্তর্জাতিক সাহায্যের আবেদন জানান বঙ্গবন্ধু এবং খুব অল্প সময়ের মধ্যেই সাহায্য আসতে শুরু করে। শুরু হয় বাংলাদেশ পুনর্গঠনের এক নতুন যুদ্ধ। এরই মধ্যে সক্রিয় হয়ে ওঠে স্বাধীনতাবিরোধী একটি চক্র। মুক্তিযুদ্ধের বিরোধীতাকারী দেশীয় ও আন্তর্জাতিক চক্রের প্রত্যক্ষ ইন্ধনে রাজনৈতিক অস্থিতশীলতা সৃষ্টি করতে উঠেপড়ে লাগে এই চক্রটি। এসময় বঙ্গবন্ধু বুঝতে পারেন, রাজনৈতিক স্থিতিশীলতা ছাড়া দেশের উন্নয়ন সম্ভব নয়। ১৯৭৪ সালে তিনি সকল রাজনৈতিক দলকে এক ছাতার নীচে আনতে প্রতিষ্ঠা করেন বাংলাদেশ কৃষক শ্রমিক আওয়ামী লীগ বা ‘বাকশাল'। একই সাথে অন্যান্য সকল রাজনৈতিক দলকে নিষিদ্ধ করা হয়। উল্লেখ্য, প্রথম যে দলটি নিষিদ্ধ করা হয় তার নাম বাংলাদেষ আওয়াশী লীগ, শেখ মুজিবের নিজের দল।
এর ফলে দেশে স্থিতিশীলতা আসতে শুরু করে। সমস্ত দেশ যখন ক্ষয়ক্ষতি কাটিয়ে উঠে ঘুরে দাঁড়াচ্ছিল, ঠিখ তখনই আসে আরেকটি আঘাত।
এর ফলে দেশে স্থিতিশীলতা আসতে শুরু করে। সমস্ত দেশ যখন ক্ষয়ক্ষতি কাটিয়ে উঠে ঘুরে দাঁড়াচ্ছিল, ঠিখ তখনই আসে আরেকটি আঘাত।
১৯৭৫ সালের ১৫ আগস্ট মধ্যরাতে একদল বিপথগামী সেনা কর্মকর্তা হত্যা করে শেখ মুজিব এবং তাঁর পরিবারের সদস্যদের। কেবল তাঁর দুই মেয়ে শেখ হাসিনা ও শেখ রেহানা সেই সময় দেশের বাইরে থাকায় বেঁচে যান। সদ্য স্বাধীন জাতির জীবনে এক অপূরণীয় ক্ষতি নিয়ে আসে এই জঘন্য হত্যাকাণ্ড, তৈরি করে রাজনৈতিক শূণ্যতা, ব্যাহত হয় গণতান্ত্রিক উন্নয়নের ধারা।