Thu Jan 02 11:51:14 UTC 2025: ## Bangladesh Rewrites History in School Textbooks, Downplaying Founding Father’s Role

**DHAKA, BANGLADESH** – New textbooks for the 2025 academic year in Bangladesh have sparked controversy by significantly altering the narrative surrounding the country’s independence in 1971. The revised texts credit Major Ziaur Rahman with declaring Bangladesh’s independence on March 26th, and again on March 27th on behalf of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father. This contradicts the long-held belief among many that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman himself made the declaration.

According to Professor A.K.M. Reazul Hassan, chairman of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board, the changes aim to present a more factual account. The revisions also removed Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s title of “Father of the Nation” from the textbooks. Writer and researcher Rakhal Raha, involved in the textbook revisions, stated that the changes sought to eliminate “exaggerated, imposed history,” citing the removal of the claim that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman sent a wireless message declaring independence while under arrest by the Pakistani army.

The alterations have ignited debate, particularly among supporters of the Awami League, who maintain that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman made the declaration, with Ziaur Rahman simply reading it out later. This latest move follows a series of actions taken by the government that diminish Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s legacy, including the phasing out of currency notes bearing his image and the cancellation of the national holiday commemorating his assassination. These actions have been taken since the ouster of his daughter, Sheikh Hasina, as Prime Minister.

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