Khaled Mosharraf (; 9 November 1937 – 7 November 1975) was a major general in the Bangladesh Army, who is known for his role in the Bangladesh Liberation War and the subsequent coups in post-independence Bangladesh. After deposing Khondakar Mustaq Ahmad in the 3 November 1975 coup, Mosharraf was assassinated on 7 November 1975.
During the outset of the Bangladesh Liberation War, Mosharraf was second in command of the 4th East Bengal Regiment in Comilla, which revolted against Pakistan on 27 March 1971. During the war, Mosharraf was appointed the sector commander of sector 2, in addition to leading K Force and Crack Platoon. After being wounded in combat, A.T.M. Haider was appointed the new sector commander of sector 2. Following the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the chain of command in the military broke down, which Mosharraf intended to restore on 3 November 1975 by removing Khondakar Mustaq Ahmad from power and exiling army officers responsible for Mujib's assassination. On 7 November 1975, a counter-coup was organised by Lt. Colonel Abu Taher and his clandestine group Biplobi Shainik Sangstha, during which Mosharraf was killed, alongside Lt. Colonel A.T.M. Haider and Colonel Nazmul Huda. He was a son of Mosharraf Hossain and Jamila Akhter. His family is described as being a landed clan and active in the politics of Bengal at the time.
Education and army training
Mosharraf completed his matriculation examination at Cox Bazar High School in 1953 and his IA examination from Dhaka College in 1955. During the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War, Mosharraf served as the adjutant of the 4th Bengal Regiment. Subsequently, he received additional training in West Germany and Britain and served as an instructor in the Kakul academy. After being informed by Major Shafaat Jamil of the situation in Dhaka, Mosharraf led a mutiny of the 4th EBR on 27 March.
The troops of the 4th EBR wanted to go to Dhaka to fight the Pakistani army, but Mosharraf warned that: Mosharraf was wounded by a gunshot to the head on 23 October 1971 and was treated at a military hospital in Lucknow Cantonment. Following the 15 August coup, the chain of command broke down in the Bangladesh army, as the junior officers who led the coup began 'acting like generals'.
7 November 1975 Coup
Before Ziaur Rahman was arrested in the early hours of 3 November 1975, he made a phone call to his friend Lt. Colonel (retired) Abu Taher and urged him to do something. In response, Taher and his clandestine group Biplobi Shainik Sangstha (BSS) held meetings every night between 4 and 6 November in preparation for an uprising, which was launched during the early hours of 7 November. When the coup began, Mosharraf was at Bangabhaban with A.T.M. Haider and Nazmul Huda.
Upon realising that their 3 November coup had been undone, Khaled Mosharraf, A.T.M. Haider, and Nazmul Huda left Bangabhaban to seek safety at the headquarters of the 10 Bengal Regiment. Although the soldiers of the 10 Bengal Regiment did not have any direct link to the Biplobi Shainik Sangstha, they came to know about the mutiny. Zia asked Nawazesh to preserve the bodies of the three men.
Legacy
In May 2023, police opened an investigation into the killings of Khaled Mosharraf, Nazmul Huda, and A.T.M. Haider after the daughter of Huda, Naheed Ezaher Khan, filed a case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station. Khan held several army officers responsible, including Ziaur Rahman and Abu Taher.