National Citizen Party leaders walked out of a state-organised programme yesterday, alleging that a documentary screened at the event deliberately distorted the history of the July uprising.
They said the documentary failed to accurately present the chronology of the movement, omitted the August 3, 2024, rally at the Central Shaheed Minar, where then student leader Nahid Islam announced the one-point -- resignation of Sheikh Hasina and her cabinet.
The walkout took place during a reception and discussion for families of July martyrs and injured protesters at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in the capital. Amid the chaos, several diplomats were also seen leaving the venue.
Acting president Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, who was at the event, said he was “deeply saddened, ashamed, and hurt” by the incident, while Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan said inconsistencies in the documentary would be corrected.
During the programme, as the documentary was being screened, NCP leaders and some injured protesters chanted “Bhua, Bhua” (fake, fake), disrupting the programme.
Video clips of the incident later circulated on social media, showing attendees protesting parts related to the one-point and nine-point demands.
NCP Joint Member Secretary Mahin Sarkar, a former coordinator of the Students Against Discrimination, wrote on Facebook that the documentary portrayed Tarique as the person who announced the one-point demand.
He said Nahid, who had announced the demand despite grave risk, and Asif Mahmud, who had declared the “Long March to Dhaka”, were not properly reflected in the documentary.
During the chaos, Minister Azam took the stage, appealed for calm and said any mistakes in the documentary would be corrected.
As order still could not be restored, State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Ishraque Hossain took the microphone and rebuked the protesters, saying, “Have you come here to project yourselves?”
Addressing the slogans, Ishraque added, “What are you doing? What have you done for the martyrs’ families? You have done nothing.”
Azam then tried to calm Ishraque, while Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed took the microphone and asked those who wanted to speak to come to the stage and raise their objections.
NCP Member Secretary and MP Akhter Hossen then took the stage, urged the audience to remain calm, before announcing the party’s decision to leave the programme.
After leaving the venue, Akhter told The Daily Star that the documentary deliberately failed to present a complete account of the uprising.
“There was no mention of the huge rally at the Central Shaheed Minar on August 3 or the announcement made there. Instead, an online speech by Tarique Rahman was shown as the declaration of the one-point demand.
“I was trying to restrain them when State Minister Ishraque Hossain made hostile remarks and his followers began behaving aggressively. I then announced our decision to walk out, and we left the event.
“Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan expressed regret over the documentary. However, I believe those responsible did this quite deliberately.”
Tariqul Islam, president of Jatiya Jubo Shakti, NCP’s youth wing, alleged that signs of the BNP’s influence were evident throughout the programme.
He said neither the NCP nor any frontline leader of the uprising was shown in the documentary. Instead, an online speech by Tarique was used to represent him as the person who declared the one-point demand, he alleged.
“You may or may not give us space, but you cannot distort the history of July in this manner,” he said.
Tariqul also claimed that supporters of Ishraque assaulted NCP leaders and tried to push Mahin away.
The allegations could not be independently verified. Ishraque could not be reached for comments.
In his formal address later at the programme, Ishraque said July belongs to the people and is not the property of any individual, party or group.
Minister Azam said, “Mistakes may be made -- by me, by the ministry or by you. We will correct those mistakes together.”
Speaking at the event, acting president Hafiz said the disorder at a national programme organised to honour July fighters was unexpected, especially in front of foreign guests. “The way we were humiliated in front of foreign guests has deeply hurt me.
“There was no image of Abu Sayed, who is the image and symbol of this revolution. Without his image, this cannot be called a documentary.”
He also criticised the documentary for not including BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, saying that some mistakes had certainly been made.
Apparently referring to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, Hafiz said the person in the neighbouring country would be the happiest about the incident.
He also criticised the walkout, saying that everyone should have calmed down after the minister acknowledged the mistakes and apologised.
Salahuddin said no party or group could claim exclusive ownership of the uprising. “Why should we politicise July? If we start asking, ‘Whose July is it?’, then July will belong to none of us,” he said.
“This path to liberation was not built in a day. It was built from 2009 to 2024. July belongs to all of us.”
