সাংবিধানিক কিছু দাবীতে বঙ্গবন্ধু
৯ ফেব্রুয়ারি ১৯৫৬
করাচী
The constituent assembly of Pakistan:
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: Sir, supporting this amendment of Mr. Abul Mansur Ahmad as I do, I had no intention of speaking but my Honourable friend, Sardar Amir Azam Khan, forced me to say something in support of the amendment. I support whatever Mr. Abul Mansur, Mr. Gomez and Mr. Zahiruddin have said.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: It is an important amendment. When we came to the Constituent Assembly we became confused, seeing the attitude of our friends who occupy the Treasury Benches. Mr. friends have told just now that why this inferiority complex? Sometimes we ponder; why this inferiority complex on both sides? For seven years East Pakistan was in a majority and there was that inferiority complex “that we are in a minority and let us live together as brothers and Pakistanis. For this reason accept Parity.”
East Pakistan has a population of 56 per cent and West Pakistan has only 44 per cent population. With a view to establishing good relations and to ensure Co-operation and to remove any misunderstanding created in both the wings by the ruling clique for seven years, we thought that if we accept Parity, our friends of West Pakistan will feel confident and they will shake off their inferiority complex and they will be our brothers and they will do justice to the people of East Pakistan. I have referred to this before several times …..
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: Why in the matter of Services we should have Parity? People of East Bengal claim parity today; we claim representation according to population, in the matter of Services. They will not accept it. It was a promise of the leaders of West Pakistan that Parity not only in representation but in all respects – Services, etc. shall be ensured. Now you are going back on promises which you made at Muree and Karachi. We the People of East Pakistan and we the representatives of East Pakistan claim Parity in all matters. We should be guided in all things on population basis. Not only in the matter of representation there should be Parity in the services – Defence – everything, we will have Parity. We will fight to the last. I request leaders of the United Front to keep the interests of East Pakistan before those of theirs. Particularly I request our esteemed the Leader, Mr. Fazlul Huq, Mr. Hamidul Huq Choudhury and Mr. Biswas and others that they have promised Parity in all respects. We wanted this in all respects. I do not know what has happened to them. I would appeal to them: Please request your friends from West Pakistan to try to understand the sentiments of the people of East Pakistan. It will create disaffection and distrust if these things are not accepted. For all these reasons I support the amendment. I again request Mr. Fazlul Huq to influence his friends in the Coalition Parity to accept our amendment and provide Parity in civil services and in all respects.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: Sir, I rise to support the amendment of Mr. Zahiruddin as well as to support my amendment. Sir, my learned friend. Mr. Zahiruddin has already discussed about the Federal form of Government and what should be the powers of the Provincial Governments. Sir, this is a democratic country where a certain Parity might be in power today in Centre and certain other Parity might be in power in the Provinces. Take the case of the last Ministry which was in power at the Centre. Here the Muslim League was in power but in East Bengal in the last election people voted against the Muslim League and voted for other Party, namely, the United Front Party and thus they came into power. Now, Sir, what happened there during that time? Officers who were under the direct control of the Central Government but were working in that Province refused to carry out or obey the orders of Ministers of the Provincial Cabinet or the Provincial Legislature because they believed that the Provincial Government had no power to take any action against them if they violated the orders of the Ministers or the Ministry. Because of this reason these officers did not care at all to carry their orders or instructions. I will quote an instance here which will show you how certain officers callously disobey the orders of the Provincial Ministers. My honourable friend Mr. Biswas will remember when a case in the Dacca High Court in which the Chief Secretary of East Bengal was called for cross-examination, he declared that he used to send reports to the Central Government after every fortnight about the activities of Ministers as to what they were doing. He did this because he did not care for the Provincial Ministers knowing well that he was under the control of the Central Government and no harm could be inflicted upon him by the Provincial Government. Now, Sir, how do you expect that these officers will work under the guidance and control of the Provincial Ministers? How can you say that you have given us Provincial autonomy? If an efficient administration is required in the Provinces, these officers must be kept under the control of the Provincial Governments.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: He was the Chief Secretary of East Bengal. When he was called by the High Court of Dacca in a case for cross-examination, he declared in the High Court that he used to send reports to the Central Government on ministers including the Chief Minister. Now you can realise, Sir, how he could dare to send report to the Central Government on the activities of the Ministers and the Chief Minister. These Civil Service officers always keep this fact in their minds that they are not under the control of the Provincial Governments and they are as such protected by the Central Government and it is from there that they get their directives and instructions; they show their loyalty to the Central Government.
(Honourable Deputy Speaker: I hope the Honourable Member is making this statement with a full sense of responsibility.)
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: Yes, Sir, I am saying this with a full sense of responsibility. There are Ministers in the Provincial Governments who can easily understand the position. There are Mr. Aziz Ahmed, the then chief secretary of East Bengal had made this statement before a Dacca High Court Bench. He was a former I.C.S. officer from the Punjab Cadre.
So many experienced Ministers on that side who were Ministers in the Provinces. They know how these Central Services officers work in the Provinces. They have got no hesitation in violating the orders of Ministers or the Provincial Government. Of course, if there exist a good relation between the Centre and the Provinces, then it is expected that the Provincial Ministers or the Chief Minister might influence the Central Government to take any action against those Central Services officers who do not act according to the instructions of the Provincial Government but if any Party other than the Party in Centre is in power in the Province, the Provincial Government is helpless in taking any action against them when they violate their orders because both the parties will be at logger-heads and each Party will try to throw the other or the Party in power in the Province might try to capture power in the Centre as it happened in the case of United Front Party in East Bengal. Therefore, in the name of good administration and a good working of Federation, I have come forward with this amendment so that these officers must work according to the advice, guidance and direction of the Provincial Government and whenever it is deemed necessary, they can be asked to go out of the province and work under the Central Government. Therefore, I request my friends on the other side no body is there – and I request my honourable friend Sardar Amir Azam Khan, who will probably reply to accept my amendment. Sir, you would kindly see that from this provision we have excluded Military personnel. Therefore, only the question of Civil Services of Pakistan remains. In accepting my amendment they should also show that they are giving some power even to the Provincial Government with respect to their services.
The Honourable Mr. Hamidul Huq Choudhury: Secondly, within two months of its enforcement it will be put before the National Assembly and then extended for four months more and not for three or four years. In other words in all for six months. Therefore, Sir, as this provision is limited in all aspects and subject to control of Legislature and public opinion, and it is one which is there for the purpose of safeguarding a situation which may or may not arise, which under the present system is essential. Unless this provision is there you may create a vacuum in respect of administration of large territories. We have kept it in the hope that there will be no abuse and if there is any abuse the public opinion is the proper check.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: I want to take two or three minutes of the House. The Honourable mover has told that we are making a constitution with federal structure while the Indian constitution is a unitary constitution. You know, and I think, nowhere in the world this clause finds a place in the federal constitution. If the Honourable Member who just spoke supported this clause on the grounds of giving absolute power to Central Government to use it against Provincial Governments, I would have had nothing to say. But here we are providing for Federal constitution and Federal Government a power, which has no power like any where, where the Federal Government can take any action except in case of armed rebellion or foreign aggression. Now sir, Mr. Hamidul Huq has said that we had, this house had, revalidated section 92-A. Yes sir, we have done it, But then, the then Law Minister in his speech in Muree declared categorically after the Judgement of the Federal court that this 92-A was declared illegal and at that time 92-A Government was functioning in Bengal and so all the functions and acts done and passed during 92-A would become illegal and so the Government was faced with a very big crisis. Even if a man had been convicted of murder he could demand compensation had not the Constituent Assembly revalidated this 92-A. You should not forget that revalidation was done for the past periods and not for future. Then the Law Minister categorically declared in this very Constituent Assembly that it is for the past period and not for the future. So this argument and accusation cannot be levelled against him and does not arise now. We are making a federal constitution. I do not want to repeat the history and the experience of past years of this 92-A, as it has been discussed by my friends on this side. They have said what has happened and how this power has been misused by the Central Government especially against the popular Government which was voted in office by 97 per cent population of East Bengal. Sir, I on behalf of my Party oppose this clause because it is against the fundamental principles of Federation.
Reference:
Iqbal, S. (1997) Sheikh Mujib in Parliament (1955-58), p. 178-184, Dhaka, Agami Prakashani