 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(May 2022) |
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
300 of the 310 seat in the East Pakistan Provincial Assembly 156 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered | 29,479,386 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 57.68% | |||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Provincial elections were held in East Pakistan on 17 December 1970, ten days after general elections. A total of 1,850 candidates ran for the 300 seats in the East Pakistan Provincial Assembly. [1] The result was a landslide victory for the Awami League, which won 288 of the 300 seats.
In the previous provincial election in 1954, the Awami League, Krishak Sramik Party and other smaller parties formed an alliance called United Front (Jukto Front). The Jukto Front won a landslide victory by winning 223 of the 309 seats. The Muslim League, once the most popular party in the province, had its worst-ever defeat, with many provincial ministers, including the chief minister of East Bengal, losing their seats. [2]
In 1958, the military takeover by Field Marshal Ayub Khan overthrew all federal and provincial governments of Pakistan. [3]
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman became the leader of the Awami League in 1963 and became the strongest supporter of lifting martial law and restoring democracy. In the 1965 Presidential Election, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman openly supported and launched campaign along with his party for Fatima Jinnah. Fatima Jinnah gained more votes in East Pakistan than West Pakistan.
On 18 March 1966, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman placed Six-point movement during a conference held in Lahore which demanded more autonomy for East Pakistan. It was rejected by then political parties of both wings but got huge support from the people of East Bengal. [4] In April 1966, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman demanded to conduct a nationwide referendum on his six-point movement and said that military establishment is exploiting East Pakistan by using all export revenue of jute to feed the army. [5]
He was arrested in April 1966 in Jessore but was bailed out soon. He was again arrested on the orders of Ayub Khan in May and sent to Sylhet jail where he was charged in the Agartala Conspiracy case along with 28 East Bengali military and government officials. After huge protests against the arrest of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman across East Pakistan, all cases were withdrawn and he was released. [6]
A month before elections the deadliest tropical storm hit East Bengal which claimed lives of at least half a million people. [7] Poor response from then government of Pakistan skyrocketed popularity of Awami League. President Yahya Khan was strongly criticized by international media due to its poor disaster governance. [8]
The Awami League won a landslide victory of 288 seats. After claiming all ten seats reserved for women, it held 298 seats. [9]
 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | |||||
| General | Women | Total | ||||||
| Awami League | 288 | 10 | 298 | |||||
| Pakistan Democratic Party | 2 | 0 | 2 | |||||
| National Awami Party (Wali) | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| Nizam-e-Islam Party | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| Other parties and independents | 7 | 0 | 7 | |||||
| Total | 300 | 10 | 310 | |||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 29,479,386 | – | ||||||
| Source: Baxter, Jhotpot Info, Banglapedia | ||||||||
Despite the Awami League's landslide victory and clear mandate. Yahya Khan and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) didn't want the majority from East Pakistan to rule Pakistan. Bhutto said "udhar tum, idhar hum" (you rule East, we rule West) [12] and threatened PPP members of parliament by saying that he will break legs of those who will go to Dhaka to attend the National Assembly session called on March 3, 1971, because he wanted to block Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from becoming Prime Minister of Pakistan. [13] After the National Assembly session was cancelled by President Yahya Khan on March 1. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman gave his famous speech on March 7 to a huge crowd at Ramna Course Ground in Dhaka and demanded lifting of martial law, withdrawal of army to their barracks and transfer of power to the elected representatives by the people before the 25 March National Assembly session. [14] On March 26, 1971, the Pakistan military launched Operation Searchlight against Bengali nationalists to curb the Bengali nationalist movement in East Bengal. [15] Sheikh Mujibur Rehman declared the independence of Bangladesh on 26 March 1971. This led to a start of a 9 month long war which led to the surrender of Pakistani forces in East Pakistan and the independence of Bangladesh. [16]
Syed Ismail Hossain Siraji was a Bengali royal as well as an author and poet from Sirajganj in present-day Bangladesh. He is considered to be one of the key authors of period of the Bengali Muslim reawakening; encouraging education and glorifying the Islamic heritage. He also contributed greatly to introducing the Khilafat Movement in Bengal, and provided medical supplies to the Ottoman Empire during the Balkan Wars. Anal-Prabaha, his first poetry book, was banned by the government and he was subsequently imprisoned as the first South Asian poet to allegedly call for independence against the British Raj. The government issued Section 144 against him 82 times in his lifetime.
Dhaka (Dacca) is a modern megacity with origins dating from 500 BC to 200 BC. The history of Dhaka region begins with the existence of urbanised settlements that were ruled by Gupta Empire, Gauda Kingdom, Pala Empire and Chandra dynasty before passing to the control of the Sena dynasty in the 10th century CE. After the reign of Sena dynasty, the region was ruled by the Hindu Deva dynasty of Bikrampur.
In 1971, the Pakistan Army and their local collaborators, most notably the extreme right wing militia group Al-Badr, engaged in the systematic execution of Bengali intellectuals during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971. Bengali intellectuals were abducted, tortured and killed during the entire duration of the war as part of the Bangladesh genocide. However, the largest number of systematic executions took place on 25 March and 14 December 1971, two dates that bookend the conflict. 14 December is commemorated in Bangladesh as Martyred Intellectuals Day.
Hakim Habibur Rahman was an Unani physician, litterateur, journalist, politician and chronicler in early 20th-century Dhaka.
Ibrahim Shah Sultan Balkhi, also known by his sobriquet, Mahisawar, was a 16th-century Muslim saint. He is associated with the spread of Islam in Sandwip and Bogra.
Barishal Zilla School, popularly known as BZS, is a public educational institution for boys, located in Barisal, Bangladesh. It was the first high school established in Barisal Division. Founded as Barisal English School on 23 December 1829 by W. N. Garrett, it began with 27 students. In 1853, the school was renamed Barisal Zilla School.
The 1969 East Pakistan uprising was a democratic political uprising in East Pakistan. It was led by the students backed by various political parties such as the Awami League, National Awami Party, and Communist party of East Pakistan and their student wings, and the cultural fronts against Muhammad Ayub Khan, the president of Pakistan in protest of the oppressive military rule, political repressions, Agartala Conspiracy Case and the incarceration of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other Bengali nationalists.
Musa Khan was the leader of the Bara-Bhuiyans of Bengal following the death of his father, Isa Khan, who is known for resisting the Mughal invasion of Bengal.
Shāhzāda Bārbak, known by his regnal title as Ghiyāsuddīn Bārbak Shāh, was the Sultan of Bengal in 1487 and the founder of the Sultanate's Habshi dynasty. He was a former commander of the palace-guards of Jalaluddin Fateh Shah court.
Malik Andil Habshi, better known by his regnal title Saifuddin Firoze Shah was the second "Habshi" ruler of the Bengal Sultanate's Habshi dynasty. He was a former army commander of the Sultanate's Ilyas Shahi dynasty.
Mohammad Mozammel Huq was a Bengali-language poet, novelist, magistrate and educationist. His writings were said to have been inspired by a "Muslim renaissance".
Nawab Bahadur was a title of honour bestowed during Mughal Empire and later during British Raj to Indian Muslim individuals for faithful service or acts of public welfare.
Bangladesh–Sudan relations refers to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Sudan. Colleges in Bangladesh, like the Sher-e-Bangla Medical College, have hosted students from Sudan.
Sikhism in Bangladesh has an extensive heritage and history, although Sikhs had always been a minority community in Bengal. Their founder, Guru Nanak visited a number of places in Bengal in the early sixteenth century where he introduced Sikhism to locals and founded numerous establishments. In its early history, the Sikh gurus despatched their followers to propagate Sikh teachings in Bengal and issued hukamnamas to that region. Guru Tegh Bahadur lived in Bengal for two years, and his successor Guru Gobind Singh also visited the region. Sikhism in Bengal continued to exist during the colonial period as Sikhs found employment in the region, but it declined after the partition in 1947. Among the eighteen historical gurdwaras in Bangladesh, only five are extant. The Gurdwara Nanak Shahi of Dhaka is the principal and largest gurdwara in the country. The Sikh population in the country almost entirely consists of businessmen and government officials from the neighbouring Republic of India.
Ashrafuddin Ahmad Chowdhury was a Bengali politician who had served as general secretary of the Congress Party's Bengal branch, member of the East Bengal Legislative Assembly and later as the education minister of Pakistan. He was an advocate of Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy's United Bengal proposal.
Bangladesh Zindabad is a slogan used by Bangladeshis as an expression of patriotism and often used in political speeches and cricket matches. Its use started even before the creation of Bangladesh, during the period of United Pakistan.
Tanda, also known as Tandah and Khwaspur Tandah, was a historic 16th-century city of Bengal in the eastern part of South Asia, and one of the most prominent medieval capitals; serving the Karrani Sultans of Bengal and the early Mughal governors of Bengal.
The Sayem ministry led what eventually became the first interim government in independent Bangladesh and an unofficial model for future interim regimes. It was formed on 8 November 1975, following the assassination of Brig. Gen. Khaled Mosharraf on 7 November amid a nationwide soldier and public uprising against his 3 November coup d'état. After a three-day coup with support of some high-ranking officers and his Dhaka Brigade, Mosharraf had forced Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad, who, following the 15 August coup that assassinated the founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, replaced him as President of Bangladesh with support of the mid-ranking assassin officers, to resign. Chief Justice Sayem, with the constitutional requirement for the direct election of the president and role of the vice-president as acting president suspended by Mostaq under a martial law proclamation, had been installed in his place. With Mosharraf's death the responsibility of CMLA fell on Sayem.
The 1968–1971 East Pakistan communist insurgency was an armed conflict between several communist groups and the Pakistani government for the independence of East Pakistan, it was also later part of the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
| General elections | |
|---|---|
| Presidential elections | |
| Local elections | |
| Referendums | |
