Ghulam Azam

Ghulam Azam (7 November 1922 – 23 October 2014) was a Bangladeshi writer and politician who headed the far-right Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI).

Azam was involved in forming paramilitary groups, including Razakar Bahini and Al-Badr, to support the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War. These militias were involved in war crimes, including murder, rape, and torture during the Bangladesh genocide and opposed the Mukti Bahini, who fought for the independence of Bangladesh.

Azam was arrested on 11 January 2012 by the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh (ICT), a domestic tribunal. He was charged and found guilty of war crimes such as conspiring, planning, incitement to and complicity in committing the genocide and was sentenced to 90 years in prison on 15 July 2013. The trial was criticized by international observers such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. The deficiencies highlighted in the trial included judges improperly conducting "investigation on behalf of the prosecution", "collusion and bias among prosecutors and judges", failure "to protect defence witnesses" and "lack of evidence to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt". His family residence was known locally as Maulvi Bari during their stay in Bengal. Ghulam Azam's father, Ghulam Kabir, was a Mawlana and so was his father, Sheikh Abdus Subhan. His mother Sayeda Ashrafunnisa was the daughter of Shah Sayed Abdul Munim, whose family is a Sayed Peer family. His father, Shah Sayed Emdad Ali was a descendant of Shah Sayed Sufi Hosseini who arrived from Iran via Delhi in 1722 AD and settled in what is now known as Sayedabad of Kaliakor.

Early political career

University

While studying at the University of Dhaka, Azam became active in student politics and was elected as the General Secretary of the Dhaka University Central Students' Union (DUCSU) for two consecutive years between 1947 and 1949.

Bengali language Movement

According to Jamaat-e-Islami sources, as the DUCSU General Secretary, Azam presented a memorandum to Liakat Ali Khan, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, demanding Bengali as the state language on 27 November 1948. The sources also claim that, he was arrested for his involvement in the Language Movement, but his name has been removed intentionally from the list of language activists by the Dhaka University administration. Noted political analyst Badruddin Umar argued that Azam's assertions regarding his role in the Language Movement were politically motivated. Umar insisted that Azam highlighted these credentials specifically to secure Bangladeshi nationality upon his return from Pakistan after the Liberation War. According to Umar, this strategy was adopted because Azam realized that political Islam—his primary platform—could no longer be easily exploited in the secular framework of the newly independent Bangladesh.

On 20 June 1970, Azam was quoted in The Azad saying that fight for Bengali language was a mistake.

Jamaat-e-Islami

In 1950, Azam left Dhaka to teach political science at Government Carmichael College in Rangpur. During this time, he was influenced by the writings of Abul Ala Maududi, and he joined Maududi's party, Jamaat-e-Islami in 1954, and was later elected as the Secretary General of Jamaat-e-Islami's East Pakistan branch.

In the run-up to the 1970 Pakistani general election, Azam, together with leaders of many other parties in East Pakistan (including the Pakistan Democratic Party, National Awami Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, and the Pakistan National League), protested against the Awami League for reportedly breaking up public meetings, physical attacks on political opponents, and the looting and destruction of party offices. During 1970, while Azam was the head of Jamaat-e-Islami East Pakistan, many political rallies, including rallies of Jamaat-e-Islami, were attacked by armed mobs alleged to be incited by the Awami League.

Bangladesh Liberation War

Activities during 1971 War

During the Bangladesh Liberation War, Azam took a political stance in support of a unified Pakistan,

East Pakistan Central Peace Committee

During the war of 1971, Azam played a central role in the formation of East Pakistan Central Peace Committee on 11 April 1971. Azam was one of the founding members of this organization. The first recruits included 96 Jamaat party members, who started training in an Ansar camp at Shahjahan Ali Road, Khulna.

During Azam's leadership of Jamaat-e-Islami, Ashraf Hossain, a leader of Jamaat's student wing, Islami Chhatra Sangha, created Al-Badr in Jamalpur on 22 April 1971. In April 1971, Azam and Motiur Rahman Nizami led demonstrations denouncing the independence movement as an Indian conspiracy. Azam denied the association between the Peace Committee and Razakar Bahini, even though they were formed by the government and headed by Pakistani army general Tikka Khan. He declared that his party (Jamaat) is trying its best to curb the activities of "miscreants". He took part in meetings with General Yahya Khan, the then military strongman of Pakistan and other military leaders to organize the campaign against Bangladeshi independence. He also called for an all-out war against India. He called for the annexation of Assam.

According to ICT prosecution evidence, Azam presented a plan for the killing of intellectuals during a meeting with Rao Farman Ali in early September 1971. With his help, the Pakistan Army and the local collaborators executed the on 14 December 1971.thumb|Ghulam Azam meets Governor Lt. Gen. [[Tikka Khan, one of the top architects of Operation Searchlight on 4 Apr. 1971 in Dhaka]]

On 20 June 1971, Azam declared in Lahore that the Hindu minority in East Pakistan, under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, are conspiring to secede from Pakistan. However, he admitted that he was on the list of collaborators of the Pakistani army, but denied that he was a war criminal. According to a government declaration of 2 November, 53 candidates would be elected without competition. Jamaat received 14 of the uncontested seats.

In 2011, Azam claimed that the reasons for his opposition to the creation of Bangladesh were only political and he denied participation in any crime. He also disliked Indian involvement and influence in Bangladeshi internal society and economic matters. However, Azam returned to Bangladesh on a Pakistani passport with a temporary visa, staying as a Pakistani national even after his visa expired. The Supreme Court of Bangladesh reinstated his citizenship in 1994. His stay was, however, unwelcome in Bangladesh and he was beaten up by a crowd near Baitul Mukarram while attending a funeral in 1981.

Azam was particularly critical of the military rule under Hussain Muhammad Ershad, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1982. Azam proposed a caretaker government system to facilitate free and fair elections, which was adopted in 1990. In the 1991 Bangladeshi general election, Jamaat-e-Islami won 18 seats, and its support allowed the BNP to form a government. In 1994, he fought a lengthy legal battle, which resulted in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh ruling in his favour and restoring his nationality. Azam announced his retirement from active politics in late 2000. He was succeeded by Motiur Rahman Nizami.

War crimes trial

Arrest and incarceration

On 11 January 2012, Azam was arrested on charges of committing crimes against humanity and peace, genocide and war crimes in 1971 by the International Crimes Tribunal. His petition for bail was rejected by the ICT, and he was sent to Dhaka Central Jail. However, three hours later, he was taken to the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) hospital for a medical check-up because of health issues.

According to The Daily Star, Azam was allowed to remain in a hospital prison cell despite being declared fit for trial by a medical team on 15 January. The same paper later acknowledged that he had been placed there because to his "ailing condition".

Azam's health was deteriorating rapidly after being imprisoned. His wife, Syeda Afifa Azam, reported in several newspapers as being shocked about Azam's treatment and stated that he was very weak and had lost 3 kilograms in a month due to malnutrition.

Azam's wife complained that he had been denied proper family visits and access to books, saying that this amounted to "mental torture". The Daily Star reported that Azam's wife and his counsels were allowed to meet him on 18 February.

During the trial, former advisor to the Caretaker government of Bangladesh, human rights activist and witness for the prosecution, Sultanaa Kamal said:

<blockquote>In brutality, Ghulam Azam is synonymous with German ruler Hitler who had influential role in implementation and execution of genocide and ethnic cleansing.</blockquote>

In response to this statement, the defence counsel pointed out that the comparison was a fallacy and "fake with malicious intention" as Hitler held state power, which Azam did not and that in 1971, General Tikka Khan and Yahya Khan held state power. Prosecutor of ICT, Zead-Al-Malum said:

<blockquote>He was the one making all the decisions, why would he need to be on any committee? Being Hitler was enough for Hitler in World War II.</blockquote>

Islamic activists from different countries expressed their concerns for Mr. Azam. The International Union of Muslim Scholars, chaired by Yusuf al-Qaradawi, called the arrest "disgraceful," and called on the Bangladesh government to release him immediately, stating that "the charge of Professor Ghulam Azam and his fellow scholars and Islamic activists of committing war crimes more than forty years ago is irrational and cannot be accepted".

The judicial process under which Azam was on trial was criticized by international organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Human Rights Watch criticized the "strong judicial bias towards the prosecution and grave violations of due process rights", calling the trial process deeply flawed and unable to meet international fair trial standards.

Verdict

Azam was convicted of war crimes during the Bangladesh Liberation War by the International Crimes Tribunal. The Daily Amar Desh said that the evidence presented before the court against Ghulam Azam consisted of newspaper clippings published during 1971 and not independently proved.

Death

Ghulam Azam died at age 91 on 23 October 2014 at Bangladesh Medical University, following a stroke after which he was put on life support. He died while serving jail sentences for crimes against humanity during the Bangladesh Liberation War. He was also suffering from kidney ailments.

Azam was buried at his family graveyard at Moghbazar, Dhaka on 25 October. His namaz-e-janaza (Islamic funeral prayer) was held at Bangladesh's national mosque Baitul Mokarram; thousands of people attended his funeral prayers,. Different quarters of the country protested against taking Azam's body to the national mosque.

Family

His son, Abdullahil Amaan Azmi was a brigadier general in the Bangladesh Army who was dismissed without explanation. He was missing after 2016. In 2022, it was revealed by an investigative report by Netra News that he was detained at a secret prison called Aynaghar, which is controlled by the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence.

In August 2024, after the July Revolution, he was released from Aynaghar after 9 years of disappearance. Moreover, his dismissal was revoked and he was granted retirement as a Brigadier General, with the benefits of the rank.