Name: Aleya Khatun
Husband: Mozammel Huq
Vill:
Barai,
P.O.:
Khajapur, P.S.: Fulbari
Dist.:
Dinajpur
Education:
Illiterate
Age in 1971: 20 yrs.
Occupation
in 1971: Housewife
Present
Occupation: Housewife
Q.
Were you attacked by the
A.
Yes, I was.
Q.
How were you attacked?
A.
The war had already started and we were running away.
Q.
Where were you going ?
A.
Some other place where the Khans
wouldn’t go.
A.
We had spent two days in a village on the way. My husband with our baby
in his arms and our nephew went out to see if any Khan soldiers were around. We were hiding in a bamboo grove. We
thought if the road was clear we would get out, if necessary we would go to
Q.
Did you see it with your own eyes?
A.
Yes, I saw it with my own eyes. They killed my husband and my child.
Q.
How old was your child then?
A.
He was only one year old.
Q.
Only one year old?
A.
Yes, only one year old.
Q.
They killed him?
A.
Yes, they killed him.
Q.
They also killed your husband?
A. Yes, they killed my husband
and also the son of my elder brother-in-law.
Q.
They killed the boy?
A. Yes, they killed the boy.
Q. What was your husband’s name?
A. Mamtaz Ali.
Q. You saw the killing of your husband, your baby and your nephew?
A. Yes, I saw the killings.
Q. What was your feeling then?
A. I became insane. My mother wept. She said there was no way we could
return home. If we did the Khans will
kill us also. A lot of people were going to
Q.
So you went to
A.
Yes.
Q.
What did you do with the bodies of your dead husband and baby?
A.
What could we do? I had lost my senses. Perhaps the ‘Doms’
(sweeper) had removed them.
Q.
What is the name of the place where the killings took place?
A. Ambari.
Q. And then what did you do?
A. Then we went to
Q. Where did you stay in
A. We went to Basanti.
Q. You went to the Basanti
refugee camp?
A. We went to the Basanti
refugee camp. There was a tree on the bank of a pond. That’s where a tarpaulin
was fastened for our shelter. I stayed there for 11 days.
Q.
And then what did you do?
A.
I said I would return to my village. If the Khans want they could kill me. And then I returned to my village.
Q.
How did you come back?
A. My mother, a daughter of my
brother-in-law, her husband and I returned to our village. I was sick. I
couldn’t come straight. The rest returned leaving me and my daughter behind. There
was a mango grove where we stopped. It was raining and we were all wet. We
heard loud sounds all around, I don’t know what caused
the sounds. Early in the morning when the sun was about to rise we left the
mango grove.
Q. Was there no one with you?
A. There was no one else with
me, only my daughter.
Q. How old was your daughter?
A.
She was only 3 yrs old.
Q.
You were all alone with only a 3 yr old daughter?
A.
Yes, I was all alone in that mango grove. When it became somewhat clear
I saw an old men standing behind me. He asked me, “Where do you want to go?”. Then I said, I want to go to
Q.
Do you know the old man?
A. No, I don’t. He disappeared. When I looked
back I saw two cars coming our way. I took my daughter and hurriedly hid
ourselves behind a tree. The cars came near us and stopped and then they
discussed something and left without firing at us or doing anything to us.
Q. So you returned home?
A. Yes, we returned home. Our
house was looted. Nothing was left. How could we stay there? We had no way we
could manage. A young son of my brother-in-law was a street-side trader of
little articles. It was difficult for him to look after his own family, not to
talk about us. So we left and took refuge in my sister’s home.
Q.
And then what happened?
A. The country became independent. My sister got me married to a
freedom fighter. At first I didn’t agree. I said, if I
got married what would happen to my daughter? My husband insisted and said, he would take care of my daughter. When she grew up my
husband got her married. She is now living with her in-laws.
Interviewer: Bhabendranath
Barman
Date
of Interview: November 23, 1996
Translator:
Dr. Faruq Aziz Khan
Source: History from Below, Centre for Research on
Liberation War of