Pakistani Agents Distributing Papers in Camps
Form Our Staff Correspondent, DARJEELING, July 8. – Moulana Khairul Islam, president, Ulema Awami League, now visiting various areas to mobilize support for Bangladesh and the Mukti Fouj said at a Press conference here that Pakistani agents were clandestinely distributing newspapers published in Banglore among refugee camps and at others places to mislead the people, particularly the Muslims.
Moulana, who held parleys with Gorkha League leaders and others with a view to establishing branches here of the Indo-Bangla friendship Association and Bangladesh Freedom Fighters Association, told reporters one of his main missions was to counter Pakistani canards in India and overseas.
Expressing deep disappointment over the apathy shown towards Bangladesh by a majority of Indian Muslims he appealed to them to rally to its cause. The Moulana said the Pakistani Army and the Muslim League were exterminating Awami League followers, not even sparing rank and file cadres. Their houses were marked and the Bengalis were then picked up and murdered. Bengali women were being sterilized and other systematic methods of genocide carried out to reduce the Bangali population to a minority, he said. Non-Bengali civilians were being given arms to oppose the Mukti Fouj.
He said a sizable number of Mukti Fauj volunteers had almost completed their training and would soon launch a heavy onslaught against the Pakistani Army. The delay over official recognition of Bangladesh was hampering procurement of sophisticated arms from foreign countries. The Moulana felt India being the closest to Bangladesh, should be the first to recognize Bangladesh unilaterally without waiting for other countries.
The Pakistani propaganda alleging Bihari Muslims were killed Awami Leaguers was merely to mislead Indian Muslims, he emphasized and added he should be visiting Afro-Asian Muslim countries soon to explain actual situation in Bangladesh and the genocide being perpetrated there.
Reference: Hindustan Standard, 09.07.1971