The last dance on Narsingdi road

The morning of 16 December 1971 bathed in the resplendent glow of the sun. The radiant warmth and blessing of the day enveloped the vast delta with a promise of newfound freedom. An eager multitude, spanning generations, tuned their ears to the radio, yearning for the announcement of an independent nation they could proudly call "Bangladesh".

As the airwaves crackled with the proclamation from Akashbani Kolkata about the Pakistani army's surrender in Dhaka, a pure sense of joy swept through the populace. Seven and a half crore people jumped to their feet, their collective voices echoing the triumphant cry of "Joy Bangla." The exultant roar reverberated across the entire nation, rousing even the dormant villages that had sought refuge from the bullets of predatory forces disguised as the Pakistani army.

Emerging from the shadows of a nine-month-long ordeal, the people, who had taken shelter in those very villages, spilled onto the Dhaka-Narsingdi Road. The euphoria reached even the sleepiest corners of the land, breathing life into the once-silent villages that had endured months under the oppressive spectre of death.

People, young and old, openly cried tears of happiness, looked up at the sky in prayer, danced, laughed out loud, and sang the songs of the liberation war, "Joy Bangla, Banglar Joy, Hobey Hobey Hobey, Hobey Nishchoy…". And it happened. Defeated, the occupying forces had withdrawn to lick their wounds in the dark catacombs of infamy.

The ecstasy, joy, and gratitude overflowed in every heart. Roadside tea stalls offered hot tea to everyone free of cost. Villagers from nearby homes brought ripe bananas and rice cakes for the people. Everyone waved at the soldiers passing by and yelled "Bandhu, Bandhu, Joy Bangla." Indian soldiers replied back, flashing the two-finger victory sign.

Narsingdi, a stronghold of the Pakis, had been liberated two days prior on 14 December. At around 9am on 16 December, many of us went to Purinda bazaar and saw thousands of Mitra Bahini soldiers and Bengali freedom fighters heading towards Demra for the final fight in Dhaka. 

On the two sides of the highway, soldiers had dug foxholes in preparation for war. On high grounds, they had positioned light machine guns (LMGs) and deployed about 10 soldiers carrying sub-machine guns (SMGs), grenades, and self-loading rifles (SLRs) in each position. Two huge field guns had been placed on the bank of the river at Tarboro (opposite Demra river bank), which Indian officers said were calibrated to hit Dhaka Cantonment.

I met an Indian army major near a tea stall at Purinda bazaar. We spoke for a while, sipping tea. He vividly described the ferocious battle for Narsingdi. They faced severe resistance from Pakistanis holed up inside concrete bunkers on higher ground, firing mortars and heavy machine guns. However, when the Mitra Bahini soldiers started to cross the Meghna River on amphibian tanks, and paratroopers landed behind their backs, the firing stopped, and the Pakistanis fled towards Dhaka on the night of 14 December.

As I watched the never-ending cavalcade of troop carriers, trucks, and small vehicles around 12 noon, local freedom fighters, with the help of some villagers, captured a Razakaar commander from the toilet of a house where he was hiding. The infamous Horzu Munshi used to pass information about the freedom fighters who had taken shelter in many villages around Rupganj, Saatgram, and Araihazar. 

Freedom fighters had been trying to capture him, but he remained elusive for all these months. As he was brought to Purinda bazaar, some young freedom fighters loaded their weapons and wanted to shoot him right there. But their commander intervened and told them to give him a good beating and then hand him over to the police. A small contingent of Razakaars positioned to guard a bridge nearby had already been captured early in the morning. They were tied to a pillar with a rope in a school building near the bazaar. Four armed freedom fighters stood guard.

As I proceeded on a rickshaw towards Tarabo to look at the two field guns, I noticed a heavily damaged Pakistani troop carrier in a roadside canal. Locals told me it was about to cross the dried-up canal in the morning on 12 December when an Indian helicopter appeared in the sky and destroyed it. Local Muktis had sent signals over the radio about the vehicle carrying weapons towards Narsingdi. All troops in the vehicle were shot dead by the freedom fighters, who were waiting in the nearby bushes. This happened near Pachrukhi Bridge, which was demolished by the Muktis with dynamite in August.

Crucial blow on the important artery 

The Dhaka-Narsingdi Road served as a vital link road for the Pakistanis throughout the nine-month war. The wide and concrete road made it easy for them to transport troops, supplies, and ammunition up to Bhairab and Brahmanbaria. The famous road saw one of the earliest instances of armed resistance in the history of the liberation war.

A big Pakistani army convoy was on its way to Narsingdi early on the morning of 9 April. We heard the rumbling of big troop carriers coming from the Narsingdi Road, which was only about two miles from where we were. There was no village or large trees between the road and Naogaon village where we had taken shelter. So we had a clear view of the army convoy movement on the highway. 

It was almost a two-mile-long convoy carrying heavy arms and hundreds of troops to set up a strong base in Narsingdi. When the lead vehicles reached the Panchdona road bend about three miles from Purinda bazaar, some Bengali army personnel hiding in the bushes opened fire with two LMGs and Chinese rifles. The jeep was carrying an officer and some troops who immediately died in the ambush, and others in the troop carriers behind the jeep got injured. 

The army convoy stopped on the track, and troops got out of the vehicles and took up positions on both sides of the road. They began to fire indiscriminately on both sides of the road, killing some villagers in the distance. We immediately took shelter behind large trees to avoid getting hit by stray bullets. 

At Pachdona, Bengali resistance fighters kept firing for about 30 minutes and then retreated deeper into the village. These fighters had fled from Gazipur Ordnance Factory two nights before and reached the Pachdona area when they heard of Pakistani army movement. Later that day, two PAF Saber jets came low over Narsingdi and dropped bombs, killing some innocent people.

Blowing up a vital bridge

A large bridge was located on Narsingdi Road at Pachrukhi bazaar, about 12 miles from the Tarabo river bank. There was a two-story brick building on one side of the bazaar adjacent to the main road. After the 9 April operation at Pachdona, the Pakistanis had taken possession of the building and kept a small unit of soldiers there.

The canal under the bridge was wide, and during the monsoon season, huge cargo boats used to bring essential commodities for the local traders. Freedom fighters who had taken shelter in the nearby villages realised the importance of the bridge to the enemy, so they decided to demolish it. 

In the month of August, on a dark night, a small group of Muktis took position under the bridge. They tied some sticks of dynamite beneath it and set fire to the fuse. The noise of the explosion was deafening and could be heard from miles away. The large bridge blew up and fell into the canal below. 

The next day, Pakistanis came from both Narsingdi and Dhaka to inspect it. Before leaving the area, they fired randomly at the houses, killing some villagers. This loss was a significant blow to the enemy as it greatly disrupted the smooth communication on the important road.

Daring deeds of two teenagers

Perhaps the most daring operation on Narsingdi Road was carried out by two ninth graders. 

On a cold morning in October, two young students boarded a big Pragati bus from Madhabdi, about five miles from Pachrukhi, which was bound for the Tarabo river bank. The boys had shawls wrapped around their bodies to keep warm. They entered the bus through the rear door and slowly elbowed their way to the front. 

The front seat for two passengers used to face the driver. In the front seat, two Pakistani soldiers were travelling with an LMG that they had collected from Narsingdi. They also had their personal weapons — two Chinese rifles. The soldiers were taking the machine gun to the Pachrukhi bazaar outpost. 

The two young boys were carrying two fully loaded and ready-to-fire SMGs beneath the shawls. With nerves of steel, they positioned themselves in front of the two soldiers and opened fire from point-blank range. The soldiers did not have a chance to even look up to see who the assailants were.

Many such incidents took place on and around the Narsingdi Road in the nine months of our glorious War of Liberation that deserve to be researched through the accounts of the freedom fighters who were present there.

Shahnoor Wahid. Sketch: TBS

Shahnoor Wahid is a senior journalist.