Students' demand for constituent assembly vote justified: Farhad Mazhar

The demand for a constituent assembly vote by students is justified, as failure to properly form the state in the post-July uprising period could set the country back by 50 years, said renowned poet and intellectual Farhad Mazhar.

Today (15 March), at a programme in Jashore, he said that after 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman did not implement the people's aspirations, nor was a constituent assembly vote held. "As a result, the proper formation of the state was not achieved, even though such a vote is a recognised method for state-building."

He further argued that the constitution of 1972 was essentially "Pakistan's constitution" because those who drafted it were originally elected to frame the constitution of Pakistan.

Farhad Mazhar made the remarks at an event titled "The Role of Youth in Post-July Revolution Bangladesh", organised by the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, Jashore, this afternoon at the Jessore Shilpakala Academy auditorium.

Calling the interim government an "elected one", he said, "Professor Yunus was made the Chief Adviser through a mass uprising. He was elected with blood. So, which is more important – votes or blood?"

He further asserted that the mass uprising would never have succeeded if BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia had not remained steadfast in her opposition to the ousted Awami League government.

However, criticising the BNP, he said, "The downfall of the BNP began when they stopped listening to us. Those who refuse to learn from history will eventually disappear – if not today, then tomorrow."

Other speakers at the event included Benjeen Khan, writer, researcher, and founder of Prachya Sangha, Jashore; activist Mohammad Romel; Khaled Saifullah, central members of the National Citizens' Committee; Fahim Al Fattah and Maruf Kabir, student leaders of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, Jashore; and Ashalata, leader of the Jashore Citizens' Committee.