On the occasion of Language Martyrs Day (Bhasha Shahid Diwas) Students, People, MLA pay tribute to the 11 Language Martyrs who sacrificed their lives for Bangla, language.
Today, the MLA and student tribute the 11 Martyrs in Silchar Railway Station. District Commissioner, Cachar, Shri Mridul Yadav IAS paid homage to the Language Martyrs at the Martyrs Tomb in the premises of DC’s Office Cachar Silchar along with staff and officers of District Administration, Cachar.
The Bengali Language Movement in Barak Valley started in 1960 as a protest against the Assam government’s decision to make Assamese the only official language of the state. Most people in Barak Valley spoke Bengali, and about 80% of the population there are ethnic Bengalis, including both Hindus and Muslims.
On May 19, 1961, a tragic event happened at Silchar railway station where Assam police opened fire and killed 11 Bengali protesters. From that day 11 Language Martyrs, people of Barak Valley Tribute them on May 19 every year.
History of 19th May Bhasha Shahid Diwas
On October 10, 1960, Bimala Prasad Chaliha, the Chief Minister of Assam at the time, introduced a bill in the Legislative Assembly to make Assamese the only official language of the state. Ranendra Mohan Das, a Bengali legislator from Karimganj (North), opposed the bill, arguing that it unfairly imposed the language of one-third of the population on the other two-thirds. Despite the protests, the bill was passed on October 24, 1960, officially making Assamese the state’s sole official language.
On 5 February 1961, Cachar Gana Parishad formed to protest against the decision and to imposition of Assamese in the Bengali speaking areas of Barak Valley, Assam.
On 14 April 1961, people from Silchar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi observed Sankalpa Divas to protest the language injustice.
From 24 April to 2 May 1961, the Parishad organized a two-week padayatra (march) covering over 200 miles through villages in Barak Valley to raise awareness. Another march later held in Hailakandi. Parishad leader Rathindranath Sen announced that if Bengali was not made an official language by 13 April 1961, a hartal (work stoppage) would be held on 19 May.
On 18 May 1961, Assam police arrested three key movement leaders: Nalinikanta Das, Rathindranath Sen, and Bidhubhushan Chowdhury (editor of weekly Yugashakti).
Final Day of Protest 19th May of Bhasha Sahid Diwas
On 19 May 1961, a dawn-to-dusk hartal (strike) began peacefully in Silchar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi, with people picketing government offices, courts, and railway stations.
Around 2:30 p.m., a truck carrying nine arrested protesters (Satyagrahis) passed the Silchar railway station. The protesters at the station loudly protested the arrests.
The truck driver and police escorts fled, and soon after, someone set the truck on fire.
Within minutes, paramilitary forces at the station started beating protesters without warning and fired 17 rounds into the crowd. Nine people were killed on that day, and many others were injured and taken to hospitals. On 20 May, despite curfew, people in Silchar held a procession to honor the martyrs. Two more protesters died the following day, increasing the death toll to eleven.
The name of the 11 Martyrs
- Kanailal Niyogi
- Chandicharan Sutradhar
- Hitesh Biswas
- Satyendra Deb
- Kumud Ranjan Das
- Sunil Sarkar
- Tarani Debnath
- Sachindra Chandra Pal
- Birendra Sutradhar
- Sukamal Purakayastha
- Kamala Bhattacharya
