April 4 is the historic Teliapara Day. On this day in 1971, the first operational coordination meeting of the Liberation War was held at the manager’s bungalow of the Teliapara Tea Garden in Madhabpur Upazila of Habiganj. Surrounded by gentle hills and the greenery of tea estates, this first wartime meeting was a highly significant chapter in the history of Bangladesh’s Liberation War. On that day, commanders of the rebel units of the East Bengal Regiment and several retired senior Bengali Army officers gathered to discuss the problems of the resistance war and to determine a coordinated course of action.
The strategic decisions of the Teliapara Conference – particularly the formation of a united liberation force from the fighting battalions, assigning Colonel M. A. G. Osmani, known as ‘Papa Tiger,’ the responsibility of directing the war, establishing Army regions, and proposing the formation of a political government – marked a turning point in the Liberation War. A second conference was held at Teliapara on April 10.
The manager’s bungalow of Teliapara Tea Garden is located about two kilometres inward from the Dhaka–Sylhet highway or Teliapara railway station, near the Indian border in Madhabpur Police Station of Habiganj subdivision of Sylhet district, now Habiganj district. It was here that the first informal headquarters of the Liberation War was established.
The government has decided to preserve the bungalow. Work is progressing to conserve this historically important site and convert it into a museum. This article presents the decisions taken at the Teliapara Conference, their significance, and the current status of preserving the bungalow.
Observance of Teliapara Day
This year, Teliapara Day was observed with various programs. To mark the occasion, the Habiganj District Muktijoddha Sangsad Unit Command began the program at 11:00 a.m. with the laying of floral wreaths. Later, at 1:00 p.m., a discussion meeting was held beside the memorial monument in the tea garden.
Speaking as the chief guest, BNP Secretary General and Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, said, “It was from Teliapara that the Great Liberation War began.” The special guest at the gathering of freedom fighters was Ahmed Azam Khan, Minister for Liberation War Affairs. State Minister Ishraq Hossain, several local members of parliament, freedom fighter commanders, the deputy commissioner, the superintendent of police, and other leaders were also present.
The meeting was chaired by Golam Mostafa Rafiq, convener of the Habiganj District Muktijoddha Sangsad Unit Command. The speakers highlighted the importance of the Teliapara meeting in the Liberation War.
Looking back: The background of the Teliapara conference
After the brutal attack by the Pakistani army on the night of March 25, 1971, Bengali members serving in the Pakistani Army rebelled in their respective positions and became involved in the war for independence. This revolt by the Bengali soldiers was self-motivated and spontaneous. After the arrest of the late Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the nation was left leaderless and fell into deep uncertainty. On March 27, Major Ziaur Rahman, commanding officer of 8 East Bengal stationed in Chattogram, declared independence from the Kalurghat radio station.
In the early days of the war, there was no coordination among the five Bengali battalions of the East Bengal Regiment, the EPR, Police, Ansar, and Mujahids scattered across the country. Gradually, however, these forces established communication among themselves and took steps to launch coordinated operations. Army officers played an important role in maintaining this communication. The rebel Bengali soldiers increasingly realised that a long-term war required coordination and that the locally and separately launched resistance needed to be brought under unified leadership. Above all, a political government was necessary to legitimise the war. Realising the importance of confronting the enemy through coordinated efforts, Bengali Army officers arranged a joint clandestine meeting at Teliapara Tea Garden on April 4, 1971.
Why Teliapara was chosen as headquarters
In this context, Teliapara’s geographical location was also significant. Near the border, surrounded by tea gardens, hilly, and comparatively secure, it was well suited as a headquarters. For these strategic reasons, Major Khaled Mosharraf, commanding officer of 4 East Bengal, selected Teliapara as headquarters and on March 29 moved his battalion headquarters from Madhabpur to Teliapara Tea Garden.
Based on prior communication, on April 2 Major Khaled met and exchanged views with Brigadier V. C. Pandey, Eastern Frontier Inspector General of the Indian BSF, near the Teliapara BOP in the border area. In their discussion, both sides decided to hold a coordination meeting of rebel Army officers at the tea garden manager’s bungalow on April 4. With the assistance of Brigadier V. C. Pandey, Major Khaled contacted Army officers stationed in various parts of Bangladesh as well as representatives of the Indian government.
It is particularly noteworthy that while pro-independence Army officers were holding their first coordination meeting at Teliapara on April 4, another highly important event was taking place that same day in Delhi, India. On that day, Tajuddin Ahmad met Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and began planning the organisational framework of the Liberation War. That is another history altogether.
Participation of the pioneers of the Liberation War
On March 27, the 4 East Bengal Regiment (Baby Tigers) rebelled in Brahmanbaria, and on March 28, the 2 East Bengal Regiment (Junior Tigers) rebelled in Joydebpur. Major Khaled Mosharraf later moved his headquarters to Teliapara Tea Garden on March 29. The commanding officer of 2 East Bengal Regiment, Major K. M. Shafiullah, arrived in Kishoreganj with the company stationed in Tangail and another company stationed in Mymensingh. In a letter, Major Khaled Mosharraf requested Major Shafiullah to cancel his plan to attack Dhaka and instead proceed with his battalion to Brahmanbaria. Accordingly, Major Shafiullah established his headquarters at Teliapara Tea Garden via Brahmanbaria on April 1.
Meanwhile, Major Ziaur Rahman, commanding officer of 8 East Bengal (Pioneers), came from Ramgarh to Teliapara via Agartala on April 3. The establishment of the headquarters of both the 2nd and 4th East Bengal at Teliapara was an important development of that time. Joining them was Major Zia, whose 8 East Bengal was then fighting in Chattogram. Later, under the leadership of these three war heroes, three separate forces would be formed. Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmad later referred to these three Army leaders in his famous speech of April 10, saying, “These three heroic commanders of the eastern region have already met in conference…”
Brigadier V. C. Pandey brought retired Colonel M. A. G. Osmani (Later General) and retired Lt. Colonel M. Abdur Rab (Later Major General) from Agartala to Teliapara on the morning of April 4. It may be recalled that, on March 10, 1971, before the Liberation War, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had appointed Colonel Osmani as his Army adviser.
A unique gathering of army leaders
At 11:00 a.m., the meeting formally began under the chairmanship of Colonel Osmani. Present at this historic meeting were: retired Colonel M. A. G. Osmani, retired Lt. Colonel M. Abdur Rab, Lt. Colonel Salahuddin Mohammad Reza, retired Major Kazi Nuruzzaman, Major Ziaur Rahman, Major K. M. Shafiullah, Major Khaled Mosharraf, Major Shafayat Jamil, Major Nurul Islam, and Major Moinul Hossain Chowdhury.
Brigadier V. C. Pandey of the Indian BSF and Agartala District Magistrate Omesh Saigal were present as observers. Also present was Kazi Rakib Uddin Ahmed, the rebel sub-divisional administrator of Brahmanbaria.
It should also be especially noted that several young officers of the East Bengal Regiment and other units, as well as several political leaders from the sub-divisions of Moulvibazar and Habiganj, were present at Teliapara Tea Garden at the time, though they did not participate in the conference itself. Local political leaders and local people made major contributions both to organizing the Teliapara Conference and to later Liberation War-related activities at Teliapara. Among them, the contribution of Dewan Ashraf Ali, then an Awami League (Presently activities are banned) leader of Teliapara Union, was outstanding.
(to be continued)
The writer is a Retired Brigadier General, Researcher and Analyst, Former Commanding Officer of 2 East Bengal
