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Linking Young Minds Together
     Volume 2 Issue 98 | December 21, 2008|


  
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Freedom Fighter Kakon Bibi fights on

Iqbal Siddiquee

VALIANT freedom fighter Kakon Bibi continues to fight. She lost her husband, family and many others for the country's liberation. But again she has to move from one place to another even decades after the liberation war is over. The poor lady often has to depend on the monthly government allowance amounting to only 500 Taka, which is also not given regularly. Mostly the payment is made after months.

Today, 60-year old Kakon Bibi has only a daughter and a son-in-law. The man depends on a pushcart for his livelihood. Besides, Bibi has been suffering from high blood pressure and other old age ailments for years.

Why am I half fed today? Did I join the freedom movement to go hungry? Such were the queries from the lady, living in a remote village of Sunamganj district. She is originally from tribal Khashi community. She hailed from the foothills of Khashi hills. As Kakon Bibi got married to one Shahid Ali of Derai Thana in Sunamganj in 1970, she took the name of Nurjahan Begum as well. But, Shahid divorced her just for giving birth to a girl child on 16 March in 1971.

Then Kakon married EPR (East Pakistan Rifles) soldier Abdul Majid Khan, who was serving in Sylhet. When the liberation war began, Majid was serving in the Sylhet camp of EPR. Staying for about 2 months with her husband in Sylhet, Bibi went to bring her daughter Sakhina from her ex-husband. Meantime, Majid Khan was transferred to Doarabazar borders in Sunamganj district.

It was the month of June, 1971. Kakon came to Sylhet but did not find Majid Khan as he was sent to Doarabazar borders. She kept her daughter in the house of another Shahid Ali at Jhiragaon on the border before going to the Tengratila camp for her husband Majid Khan, but he was not found there. Pak army men at that time caught her and confined for days at their bunker and badly tortured Kakon.

Losing everything Bibi decided to take revenge. She came in touch with some freedom fighters, which had just started guerilla warfare throughout the country with the onslaught of the rainy season. She was entrusted with the task of spying in the nearby areas.

But within a short period of time, the Pak army men caught her again. One day, while torturing her, they burnt different parts on her body for extracting information about the Muktibahini! At one stage, thinking that she is dead, the Pak Army men dumped her at an unconscious state on a roadside place. Some locals took her in their custody and she got her sense back after about a week. She was then taken to Balat in the Indian state of Meghalaya for treatment. As she recovered a little, Kakon took a brief training on firearms from Freedom fighter Rahmat Ali and joined the Muktibahini men with a new spirit. She took some basic training and joined the freedom fighters who fought the Pak army men at Tengratila Ambari, Banglabazar, Teblai, Baliura, Mahabbatpur Betura, Durbin tila and Andhartila.

She sustained bullet wounds on her leg at the Ambari fight. Bibi still bears the bullet marks on her body.

After the war ended, Kakon along with her daughter took shelter on a verandah of a man's house at village Jhiragaon under Lakshmipur union. She managed to remain far away from everyone for many long years.

But things came to limelight after some newspaper report on her was published in 1996. Being instructed from the then Prime minister Sheikh Hasina, the administration allotted one acre of khash land to Bibi. Then Sylhet city Corporation Mayor Badar uddin Ahmed Kamran built a thatched house on that plot while Dainik Janakantha started giving Taka 5000 to Kakon bibi per month. But this too stopped in the beginning of 2007. Kakon today, is now compelled to beg for living.

A valiant freedom fighter-Azim uddin, who fought in the area and now serves as a senior teacher in the Tengratila High School said, Kakon had played a very important role during the critical period of the liberation war. Especially, she was entrusted with the task of spying for the freedom fighters in those odd days, he said, but she is passing her life's odd time now due to acute financial crisis and old age ailments.

Kakon Bibi is today passing her days at the remote village of Jirargaon of Doarabazar upazila in Sunamganj district.