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East Pakistan Central Peace Committee

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East Pakistan Central Peace Committee
  • Bengali: পূর্ব পাকিস্তান কেন্দ্রীয় শান্তি কমিটি
Abbreviation
PresidentSyed Khwaja Khairuddin
ChairpersonFarid Ahmad
Founder12 people, including Tikka Khan and Ghulam Azam
FoundedApril 10, 1971; 54 years ago (1971-04-10)
DissolvedDecember 16, 1971; 53 years ago (1971-12-16)
HeadquartersDacca, East Pakistan
Membership (April 1971)140[1]
Ideology
Political positionFar-right
National affiliation

East Pakistan Central Peace Committee[a] was one of several committees formed in East Pakistan in 1971 to aid efforts of Pakistani forces during the Bangladesh War of Independence. Nurul Amin, as a leader of Pakistan Democratic Party, led the formation of the Shanti Committee to thwart the Mukti Bahini, which fought for independence of the region.[2][3][4][5]

Background

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On 25 March 1971, the war in East Pakistan began. On 4 April 1971, twelve pro-Pakistan leaders, including Nurul Amin, Ghulam Azam and Khwaja Khairuddin, met General Tikka Khan of the Pakistan Army and assured him of co-operation in opposing the Bengali rebellion.[6] After subsequent meetings, they announced the formation of Citizen Peace Committee, with 140 members.[7][8][9] The first recruits included 96 Jamaat-e-Islami members, who started training in an Ansar camp at Khanjahan Ali Road, Khulna.[10][11] The Shanti Committee is also alleged to have recruited Razakars.[12][13]

History

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The leaders of the East Pakistan Central Peace Committee called on citizens of Pakistan to defend Pakistan from "Indian aggression", as India was accused of supporting the Bangladesh movement. The Peace Committee organised a rally from Baitul Mukarram to Chawkbazar Mosque on 13 April. The rally was to end with a meeting near New Market, Dhaka. At the end of the rally, riots began in Azimpur, Shantinagar and Shankhari Bazar areas, fire was set to houses of individuals supportive of independence and some were killed.[14]

The Peace Committee spread throughout East Pakistan, reaching even rural villages. Compared to the indiscriminate killing of Pakistan Army, the Peace Committee were more specific and guided by lists, they made of opponents.[14] The members of Peace Committee were feared and hated by the population of East Pakistan. Peace committee members were killed during the war.[15]

On 14 April, at a meeting in Dhaka, the Citizen Peace Committee renamed itself as the East Pakistan Central Peace Committee. A working committee was formed consisting of 21 members.[16] They set up an office in Maghbazar. The Peace Committee appointed one or more liaison officers for the different police station areas of Dhaka. On 17 April 1971, the members of the peace committee apprised Governor Tikka Khan of the progress made by them toward restoring normalcy and confidence among the citizens.[17] The central peace committee was being deputed to the district and divisional headquarters throughout east Pakistan.[18] When Pakistani troops arrived in Munshiganj, south of the capital, on 9 May 1971, they were warmly received by the local peace committee and other residents.[19]

According to the historian Azadur Rahman Chandan in his 2011 book about the war, the Peace Committee was the first organisation to be set up by local residents who collaborated with Pakistan.[6] Its members were drawn from the Muslim League which thought an independent Bangladesh was against Islam; as well as the Urdu-speaking Biharis.[20]

Tasks

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  • This was a pro-Pakistan local militia formed during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
  • They collaborated with the Pakistan Army to suppress the Bengali nationalist movement.
  • Members of this committee were involved in:
    • Targeted killings of Bengali nationalists and intellectuals.
    • Supporting the Pakistan Army in atrocities, including massacres and widespread rape.
    • Instigating violence and terrorizing Bengali civilians.
  • They earned a notorious reputation for betrayal and brutality against the Bengali population.

Abolition

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On 16 December 1971, after the end of the war, the committee was abolished.[2]

Former members

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ (Bengali: পূর্ব পাকিস্তান কেন্দ্রীয় শান্তি কমিটি, romanized: Purbo Pakistan Kendrio Shanti Committee; Urdu: مشرقی پاکستان مرکزی امن کمیٹی), also known as the Nagorik Shanti Committee (Citizen's Peace Committee), or more commonly Peace Committee or Shanti Committee, founded as the Dhaka Nagorik Committee (Bengali: ঢাকা নাগরিক কমিটি, lit. 'Dhaka Citizens Committee')

References

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  1. ^ ঢাকায় মুক্তিযুদ্ধবিরোধী নাগরিক শান্তি কমিটি [Dhaka's anti-liberation Citizen Peace Committee]. Janakantha (in Bengali). 9 April 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b Sirajul Islam; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir, eds. (2012). "Peace Committee". Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. OL 30677644M. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  3. ^ ভারতীয় চক্রান্ত বরদাস্ত করব না [We will never tolerate Indian conspiracy]. The Daily Sangram. 13 April 1971.
  4. ^ Rubin, Barry A. (2010). Guide to Islamist Movements. M. E. Sharpe. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-7656-4138-0.
  5. ^ Fair, C. Christine (2010). Pakistan: Can the United States Secure an Insecure State?. Rand Corporation. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-0-8330-4807-3.
  6. ^ a b Chandan, Azadur Rahman (February 2011) [2009]. একাত্তরের ঘাতক ও দালালরা [The Killers and Collaborators of 71] (Revised 2nd ed.). Dhaka: Jatiya Sahitya Prakash. pp. 48–54.
  7. ^ "'Peace Committee formed on Apr 10 in '71 to resist birth of Bangladesh'". The Daily Star (Bangladesh). Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  8. ^ ঢাকায় নাগরিক শান্তি কমিটি. Daily Pakistan. 11 April 1971.
  9. ^ "Wartime crime charges against Ghulam Azam". The Daily Observer (Bangladesh). Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  10. ^ Daily Pakistan. 25 May 1971. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. ^ The Daily Azad. 26 May 1971. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. ^ The Wall Street Journal, 27 July 1971; quoted in the book Muldhara 71 by Moidul Hasan
  13. ^ "Guilty of all grisly acts". bdnews24.com. 15 July 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  14. ^ a b Karlekar, Hiranmay (2005). Bangladesh: The Next Afghanistan?. SAGE. p. 149. ISBN 978-0-7619-3401-1.
  15. ^ United States Congress (1971). Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 27134–27135.
  16. ^ "Citizens Peace Committee Renamed". The Pakistan Observer. 16 April 1971.
  17. ^ "Peace Committee Leaders call on the Governor". The Pakistan Observer. 17 April 1971.
  18. ^ "Peace Committee to be set up in districts". The Pakistan Observer. 26 April 1971.
  19. ^ "Munshiganj Welcomes Pak Troops". The Pakistan Observer. 12 May 1971. pp. 1, 6.
  20. ^ Kann, Peter R. (27 July 1971). "East Pakistan Is Seen Gaining Independence, But It Will Take Years". The Wall Street Journal.
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