A tale of two sisters

Minu Haque (L) and Shimul Yousuff

The Pakistan army made a list of radio and TV performers and was looking for them. For obvious reasons Amina Billah was concerned for the safety of their daughters, specifically Minu. When Minu came to know about the field hospital in Bisramganj, near Agartala (India) from Sultana Kamal (daughter of poet Sufia Kamal) and Dr Dalia Salahuddin, she was eager to go there and work as a trainee nurse.

On August 26, Minu left home in a white Toyota Corolla, driven by Masud Sadeq. She was soon joined by others and they were dropped off near Demra. They women were clad in burqa and when they had to cross check posts, they said they were going to attend a wedding in Comilla. There were about 15/20 of them in the group, led by Habibul Alam (Bir Pratik) and Shahadat Chowdhury (former editor of Bichitra and 2000). There were trained doctors and individuals from other professional backgrounds in the group as well. Sometimes on boat, often on foot, the group headed towards the border area, near Comilla.

They reached CNB Road in Comilla. As they were wondering how to move forward unnoticed, the group was helped by some individuals who did not look like Freedom Fighters. As Minu vividly remembers, "They resembled razakars, yet they hid us in boats between loads of hilsa fish and bales of jute. I'd assume they were informers, posing as razakars, working for the Freedom Fighters. After the boat ride we had to wade for a couple of miles. Eventually, after what seemed like a lifetime, we reached Bisramganj."

Meanwhile, Shimul and the rest of the family were going through a different kind of ordeal. In the morning of August 30, Shimul was doing reyaz and her mother was reading the Quran. Shimul noticed an army truck park near their home, causing all kinds of commotion. Her brother-in-law, Altaf Mahmud was sleeping in his room and before she could go and alert him, the army men broke in through the back door. Shortly after, Abul Barq Alvi (currently a professor of Institute of Fine Arts), Shimul's brothers, and some neighbours were rounded up.

Shimul saw Altaf Mahmud being beaten mercilessly with gun butts; he was being asked to confess that he had ammunition hidden somewhere in the house. Altaf was composing inspirational songs for the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra. He was also a member of 'Crack Platoon', one of the urban guerrilla groups. Abdus Samad, a former acquaintance of Altaf, had informed the military of his links with the Crack Platoon.

As the military men threatened him that none of the family members would be spared if he did not cooperate, Altaf had no other way but to show them where the ammo was buried. He was made to dig it up by himself; the ruthless beating did not stop however.

Shimul still remembers her brother-in-law's bleeding forehead; he was struggling to carry the heavy trunks. All the men in Shimul's family were taken away; Altaf separately in another car. As Altaf was being pushed to the car, he looked at Shimul for a few seconds. "I still remember that look. That was the last time I saw him. After they were gone, I felt I'd grown up overnight," says Shimul.

"I didn't know Urdu, regardless of how I felt, I was still 14. I tried my best to find out the whereabouts of my brothers and Altaf bhai. I was told they were all killed. I didn't have the nerve to share that piece of information with my mother. Fortunately, after some time, my brothers were released. I have no idea how my brother Linu was tortured but when we tried to change his clothes, parts of his skin came off."

"Almost everyday my mother went to Cantonment, looking for Altaf bhai. We heard stories of how around 32 people whom the army arrested were kept cramped in two small bathrooms. We also heard about the ingenious techniques of torture: Abul Barq Alvi's nails were pulled off with pliers.

"We never found Altaf bhai. Till her last day, my mother believed he would come back. I think he was burnt alive by the army, as they had done with several others who couldn't walk any more, due to numerous broken bones."

After serving in the Bisramganj field hospital, Minu went to Calcutta (now Kolkata) in November. On January 1 1972, Minu left Shialdah Station for Dhaka. The journey took three days. She went to their Rajarbagh home, only to find out her family did not live there any more. The landlady was kind enough to take her to the family's new home in Maghbazar. When she went there, the new house help who had never seen Minu, would not let her in. Her mother had gone to Comilla to look for Altaf Mahmud.

Minu, now a noted dancer and Shimul, a leading theatre personality, did not celebrate Victory Day. They believe like them, the families that had lost their dear ones could not get into the festive mood.