If politics means dynasty worship, what's wrong with depoliticisation?

It has been two months since the interim government took over. Since then, there has been quite a war of words. The target is the chief advisor and a number of his colleagues. Their various statements come under vitriolic attack. They too make all sorts of statements, often unnecessarily. What is the use of talking so much? The people have seen a lot of word-mongers. They now want to see action.

Who are the opponents of this government actually? In one sense, all the political parties vying for power are this government's opponents. After all, for as long as this government is in power, there will be no 'political government'. They will have to wait, but not everyone is so patient.

In another sense, this government's main opponent is Awami League, the party that lost power two months ago. The head of the fallen party and of the government has left the country. It is still not clear whether she fled for her life or was given a safe exit. It is a bit of both. It will take time to discern this matter.

The party's leaders and activists are at a loss after the fall from power. They are not coming out into the open. Many have resorted to Facebook to voice their random narratives. From their posts it seems that the government of Muhammad Yunus is on the brink of collapse. The government is toppled at the drop of a hat at various hangouts in the tea stalls and drawing rooms. That has been happening down the years in this country. This is intellectual exercise to some, sheer recreation to others.

The "fallen power" is very active on Facebook. I was thinking, Awami League is an old and experienced party. The party leaders would always claim that this was the largest and most popular party in the country, that it has supports in each and every village.

When the streets were teeming with thousands of people on 5 August, where were the millions of AL leaders and activists? Why did they not gather around Ganabhaban to boost their beloved leader's strength and courage? Now that they have lost everything, they just rant and rave on Facebook.

It was the same back in August 1975. The slogan then had been, "One leader, one country, Bangabandhu's Bangladesh". With the leader gone, it didn't take a moment for his men to scuttle into hiding.

This scene was repeated in 2024. The loyal followers had cried out in unison, "Leader, do not fear, we haven't left the streets!" But the leader left them as orphans and secretly slipped out of the country. Her party is nowhere to be found.

The Awami League spokesperson now is the expatriate son of the fugitive party president. So it's back to the dynasty. He is reportedly the citizen of another country. Is there not a single other person who can represent the country? What sort of party is this where the leader doesn't trust anyone outside of her family?

Sheikh Hasina's party has been non-existent for quite some time. By party, we refer to Awami League. She would rather depend on bureaucrats, the police and the intelligence agencies. She would run a force of helmeted goons. Beneficiary relatives and toadies were scattered all over. Like robots, they would intone whatever they were taught. She had killed the party long ago. But she had a large band of supporters. She created this loyal band of supporters by proffering various positions, awards, allowances and business. They are now in a flurry with their Facebook posts from home and abroad.

Hasina did not trust the people. That is why she held farcical elections and remained at the helm one term after the other. She had thought that this was the life. But all things must come to an end. When the axe fell, her loyal band began hue and cry. They say this was no spontaneous movement, there was planning behind the scenes for long. Conspiracy theories popped up about the US pulling the strings from behind the scenes.

Can there ever be a movement without planning? What is a "plan" to the victors, is a "conspiracy" to the defeated. Those who were defeated had a plan too. That was to rule forever, with the police, the intelligence agencies and a group of clowns. That plan was dashed to the ground by the youth. The bottom line of the youth's plans was shoot us, beat us, we will not retreat. The loyal band who had received money, wealth, positions, awards, did not have this strength of mind. They were too caught up in the crafty manipulations.

People of all walks of life had participated in the liberation war. It is said that the liberation war was conducted under the leadership of Awami League. I am a freedom fighter. I saw how the main leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman first ensured the safety of his family and himself and then accepted arrest. And Awami League leaders were busy scuffling among themselves in Kolkata at the time.

The Mujibnagar government would pay the MPs a monthly remuneration. There were all sorts of reports of their decadent lifestyles. They had shoved Tajuddin Ahmed to one side. The impact of the war fell upon millions of people of the country. The armed resistance was mostly joined by the Bangali members of the Pakistan armed forces and youth from the villages. But the fruits of the liberation war were enjoyed by one party, one family. The forcefully imposed narrative of the liberation war will not last much longer.

We do not want to go back to the past. That does not mean obliterating the past. The past cannot be obliterated. The narratives of some parties start in 1971, some narratives start in 1975. Yet the history of Bangali lives and struggles go way back. There is no use living in the past. We must look ahead.

I can't help but quote from Kazi Nazrul Islam's poem "Chiranjib Jaglul" over here:
“Kobey amader kon purushey ghrito kheyechhilo keho

Amader hatey tari bash pai, ajo kori oboleho!”

(Back in the past our forefathers had got the taste of ghee,

And still today we lick our hands for that taste so longingly!”)

We love to fight over semantics. Mastermind, reset button, second independence, etc. This is “phrase mongering”. We need to break away from this. We want action. What do we want actually? We fought for democracy, for independence, for an end to discrimination, but all that remains a far cry.

Three generations were consecutively deprived of voting. In this country, 80 per cent of the people are under 50. They did not live through 1971. They were born and brought up in an authoritarian, intolerant, cruel political and state system. This must change. Now is the time to rise, to turn around.

It cannot be denied that there are two contradictory streams in this country. These roots go deep. It was the same in 1971. We were hit hard by the attack of the Pakistani forces. Many differences then were brushed aside, but the differences were not resolved. The constitution of 1972 created scope for an autocratic rule. We have been simply smothering that constitution with balms and ointments and dragging it along with us.

Then again, there is another speculation that's making rounds -- that there is a depolitisisation process in the country. The political parties feel that they own the country. They are the only ones who can wield power. They feel that if there is no political party in power, that means there is no politics. But political awareness and partisan manipulations are not one and the same. This country belongs to 170 million people. Everyone has dreams, not everyone is involved with a political party.

I simply do not comprehend how an educated person can worship a family. What have we been observing for so long in the name of politics? For days on end, years on end, the worship a person, of a dynasty, of a leader's grave, has continued in this country. If this is politics, then I see no problem with depolitisation. I want an end to the prevailing political and state system. I have expressed my feelings here. If we all want change, only then will politics change, will the country change.      

* Mohiuddin Ahmad is a writer and researcher
* This column appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ayesha Kabir