The month of August carries memories of several critical historical events and turning points in South Asia. Some have significantly shaped the region's history and had a prolonged impact on its countries. That's why these moments are remembered through various events, perspectives and discourses across the region.
In mid-August 1947, probably the most significant events in the history of the Indian subcontinent took place. Two sovereign countries, India and Pakistan, emerged, ending almost two centuries of British colonial rule. Pakistan became independent on August 14, 1947, and India on August 15. The emergence of these two countries is still referred to by many as the partition of India due to their shared yet diverse history. There is also a debate on defining the responsibilities of the then politicians for making the partition on communal line. For instance, many blame Mohammad Ali Jinnah for his two-nation theory that argued Hindu and Muslims are two separate nations and so they deserve independent states. Historical records, however, categorically showed its difference: long before Jinnah advanced his theory, it was Veer Savarkar, the man regarded as father of the Hindutva, had floated the two-nation theory.
The year also marks the 80th anniversary of Direct Action Day, a bloody turning point in India's history. On August 16, 1946, the Muslim League called a hartal (strike) to end 'British slavery and contemplated future caste-Hindu domination'. Party leaders and Muslim masses across British India were directed to suspend all business and observe a complete hartal. However, things went out of control, and brutal communal violence erupted in Kolkata, which continued for several days. The Hindu-Muslim riot soon spread throughout the country, especially in devastating forms in Bihar and Noakhali. Muslim League leader Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, then Chief Minister of Bengal, was blamed for his aggressive stance. Many alleged he restricted police movement to control the situation before it turned violent. The bloodbath severely intensified mistrust between Hindus and Muslims in Bengal and made the partition of Bengal seem inevitable. Eight decades later, memories of the day still haunt many, while religion-based political parties continue to exploit communal conflict. The surge of Hindutva in India has greatly intensified hatred against Muslims.
For Bangladesh, August is an eventful month marked by both tragedy and triumph. For the now-banned Bangladesh Awami League (BAL), the country's biggest and oldest political party, it is a month of disaster. Fifty-one years ago, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, then prime minister and head of BAL, along with his entire family, except two daughters, was killed by a small group of misguided army personnel. The brutal killing was a critical turning point for newly-born Bangladesh, which gained independence through nine months of bloody war in 1971 against Pakistan. Mujib killing also had severe impact on the regional geo-politics.
Around three decades after the killing of Mujib, his elder daughter, Sheikh Hasina, the then opposition leader of the country's national parliament, survived a grenade attack at a public meeting in Dhaka on August 21, 2004. The then-ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), headed by the then-Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia was blamed for the attack as an attempt to kill Hasina. The net outcome of the dangerous event was permanent hostility between the two major political parties in Bangladesh.
Again, August 15 was formally observed as the national mourning day every year in between 2009 to 2023 when Awami League was in power. The situation changed dramatically two years ago when a student-led mass uprising forced Sheikh Hasina to step down as prime minister on August 5 and flee to India. The bloody uprising is marked by Hasina's brutal suppression, which killed at least 1,400 people in 46 days. More than 20,000 were injured during protests demanding reforms to public job quotas for merit-based entry. Despite brutal measures, the autocratic regime could not contain the outburst of accumulated disappointment, anger, and shock. The leader fled, and her close associates followed when they could. Those unable to do so faced imprisonment. Thus, August witnesses another historical transition in Bangladesh and South Asia.
What happened in the month of August in the past cannot be reversed. What is, however, possible is to read and reread the things and re-examine the historical events critically. The task is obviously not easy especially when looking from the current context through present lens. Moreover, the communal and biased approach has made it difficult to evaluate the events objectively.
