But it contained so much of lethality, bestiality, vendetta and hatred that it defies an apt description of itself. Worse still is the fact that it did not happen in a vacuum. It occurred when a highly mandated BNP led alliance government and all of its state apparatus like security and intelligence forces were in place. The hell was let loose in broad daylight in clear public view.

Yet after 9/11 no other country drew so much of the outpowerings of sympathies from all over the world as did Bangladesh. Because they all considered the incident in Bangladesh no less than national disaster. A drove of visiting dignitaries, the emissaries of the foreign governments and the member of the diplomatic corpe lined up to meet and console both the government and opposition leaders. Still shell shocked a deeply anguished Sheikh Hasina acknowledged those courtesies, the government also received no less a share of it. But it appeared worried. After it could not be easy to absolve itself of its responsibility of public safety particularly in case of a former prime minister who was repeatedly ridiculed by the incumbent government after her disclosure of threat to her life. However the establishment behaved responsibly and made some right noises after the tragedy -- even if briefly. But a drift could not but be visible in its behaviour. It chose to add insult upon injury by blaming the AL for the enactment of 8/21.

Politics is, of course, an art of possibles when one has all the state's resources in the hand. Even then there is an elastic limit after which it carries no credibility. The establishment did exactly that by blaming the Awami League for the tragedy. But can any party commit such harakiri for its self-perdition. No amount of conspiracy theories can vindicate such insanity.

When a disaster of the magnitude and scale of one on 8/21 occurs, what does a nation do? Its patriotic people immediately close the rank, build up a consensus over what ought to be done, go deep into an introspection and are able to catapult the nation of the morass.

A nation state has an inexhaustible capacity to retrieve itself from the deepest of the crises. In our case the first and foremost priority was to unravel the mystery and find out the truth. In other words it was to catch the perpetrators of the tragedy.

Given the collective wisdom of the nation it was possible. It was possible to nip in the bud the rise of an invisible evil force in the country. It is always the privilege of the government of initiate such enterprise.

To start with, such a notion was in the offing as the government showed some alacrity in the matter. But devious forces within could have overtaken those noble ideas and scuttled the process. Soon there was face-off between the government and opposition who chose to be locked up in a no-win game. It obviously resulted in the defeat of great national purpose. Now the altitudes have stiffened on both sides only to hasten their self defeats. There is also a public nonchalance and the great majority of them tend to be resigned to their fate. The clever ones will of course fish in the troubled water. The country is now ideally suited for them. You can virtually trade on everything. Why joining street agitation -- even for rightful things -- to be mercilessly beaten up by the police who are well trained in it -- if not in hunting down the criminals.

An embattled Sheikh Hasina has already left for a month long jaunt in America. Don't the politicians -- who are also human beings -- need holidays? With that the government, always dogged by nagging opposition, now looks relaxed. It has won great political battle: Keeping the opposition at bay both in the parliament and the street over government's handling of 21st August. After having silenced the nagging fuss of 8/21 the government will now be able to treat any conceivable problem of governance from soaring prices of the essentials to continuing dismal internal order just as routine.

Yet the country like Bangladesh would remain problematic and trouble can always erupt in some from or other. Yet by all reckoning the alliance will find the turf smooth both to rule and play politics -- thanks to the absence of many Motia Chowdhurys and her likes in the street, a mercurial politics of redoubtable Sheikh Hasina and a proverbial disunity of the left parties.

Brig ( retd) Hafiz is former DG of BIISS.