The disastrous socialist experiment of the Awami League

Socialist policies resulted in economic mismanagement and famine

Socialist politics

During the first general election in 1973, opposition candidates reported widespread harassment and intimidation by Awami League activists and cadres. Reports of vote rigging also permeated across the country. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was determined to hold onto to a two thirds majority at any cost. Much of the rightwing was banned due to the collaboration of Islamic groups with the Pakistani military in 1971. The first parliament was largely composed of socialist groups, including the Awami League itself with a supermajority of 293 seats, 1 seat for the National Socialist Party (Jashod), and 1 seat for the Bangladesh Jatiya League led by Ataur Rahman Khan, a former chief minister of East Pakistan. The remaining five seats belonged to independents.

There was hardly any opposition in the first parliament. There was no Leader of the Opposition either (Bangladesh would have to wait till 1979 for its first parliamentary opposition leader). There were many reports of vote rigging during the election. In Sheikh Mujib: Triumph and Tragedy by S. A. Karim, one account speaks of:-

On the election day , March 7th, there took place a shameful and ludicrous occurrence. From 5 pm onwards, election results started to pour in at the Central Control Room from various regions of the country. Hundreds of officials on duty and journalists were present at this place. At roughly 9’o clock in the evening, it became clear that these candidates had been elected: Alim al-Razi, Abdul Rahman, Mashiur Rahman (contesting from jail), Rashed Khan Menon and Suranjit Sengupta from the NAP; Shajahan Shiraj, M. A. Jalil and Abdus Sattar from the JSD; Professor Muzaffar Ahmed and Mushtaq Ahmed Chowdhury from the NAP, and Ataur Rahman Khan from the Jatiya League. All of them were leading by big margins. Some of them were even unofficially declared to have won by the TV. Around 10 pm, telephone calls were received from the highest quarters ordering the postponement of the release of the final election results.

Helicopters were then mobilized in great haste to fly out to at least half a dozen constituencies, and “entire ballot boxes were removed and replaced with new ones”.

The election resulted in a landslide win for the Awami League. Bangladesh was transformed into a de facto socialist one party state under the garb of a de jure parliamentary democracy. This would have an enduring effect for the country’s politics for many years to come. Ruling parties have ever since sought two-thirds majorities through manipulative means to dominate parliament.

Socialist economic system

On 26 March 1972, the Awami League nationalized all banks, insurance companies, and industrial properties. An estimated 90% of industrial assets, including 580 industrial plants, and 85% of banking and insurance assets were nationalized. Land ownership was restricted to less than 25 bighas. Land owners with more than 25 bighas were subjected to taxes. Farmers had to sell their products at prices set by the government instead of the market. Private companies had to operate under heavy regulation and restrictions. For example, profit limits were imposed on companies. Any company with revenues or profits above the limit could be taken over by the state. The Dhaka Stock Exchange was closed between 1972 and 1975.

The economy lacked experienced entrepreneurs, managers, administrators, engineers, and technicians. Most of the nationalized industries were abandoned properties that had belonged to the West Pakistani capitalist elite. The new Bangladeshi government did not seek to preserve private ownership nor attract any additional capital from West Pakistan, while foreign investment hardly flowed into the newborn state. In comparison in Singapore, which is a former British colony and a republic founded by a social democratic party, the government of Lee Kuan Yew sought to attract the best possible entrepreneurial and management personnel, including British managers for banks, Japanese managers for trading companies, and American managers for tech firms. Singapore also retained the English language in its judiciary and government, while Bangladesh turned towards conservative and chauvinistic Bengali nationalism.

Bangladesh faced an acute economic crisis. The disruption caused by the war resulted in severe shortages of food and other basic necessities. The country’s principal export, jute, suffered from declining international demand as overseas markets became unstable and synthetic alternatives gained wider acceptance. Foreign currency reserves were extremely limited, while the banking and financial sectors remained weak and unreliable. Although the country possessed a large labor force, much of it lacked formal education, technical skills, and stable employment. Apart from natural gas reserves, Bangladesh had few industrial resources capable of generating significant commercial returns. At the same time, runaway inflation drove up the prices of essential goods, with increases estimated at between 300 and 400 percent.

The war also left the country’s infrastructure in a devastated condition. Transport networks were particularly affected, with numerous road and railway bridges destroyed or badly damaged, while available railway equipment was both insufficient and deteriorated. These difficulties were compounded by the lingering effects of the catastrophic 1970 cyclone, which claimed approximately 250,000 lives and caused widespread destruction. In the aftermath of independence, India emerged as one of Bangladesh’s earliest sources of economic support. During the period from December 1971 to January 1972, New Delhi pledged approximately US$232 million in assistance, drawing on resources obtained through economic and political aid provided by both the United States and the Soviet Union.

Famine

A famine struck Bangladesh in 1974. While the government reported 27,000 deaths, estimates range up to 1.5 million deaths. The price of rice rose sharply in March 1974. Widespread starvation was reported in Rangpur district in March. Between April and September, devastating floods worsened the famine situation across the country. Endemic corruption among politicians and bureaucrats resulted in mismanagement. The famine was aggravated by Cold War politics. The U.S. government withheld food aid due to Bangladesh’s policy of exporting jute to socialist Cuba. The embargo on food aid was lifted after Dhaka agreed to stop exporting jute to Cuba. The famine continued until December 1974 when an increased flow of food aid reduced prices.

Constitutional restrictions

The first amendment to the Constitution in July 1973 stripped away fundamental rights from a tribunal set up to prosecute those responsible for war crimes in 1971. The second amendment to the Constitution in September 1973 introduced a clause to suspend fundamental rights during a state of emergency. This meant that citizens could not enforce their constitutionally guaranteed rights in court during an emergency. The third amendment was enacted in November 1974 after a treaty between Bangladesh and India concerning the demarcation of the territorial boundary. Article 70 of the Constitution also restricted MPs from voting independently and required them to vote in line with the party’s stance or risk losing membership of Parliament if they defied the party’s whip.

BAKSAL

A state of emergency was declared in December 1974. This meant that Bangladeshis were legally stripped of their civil liberties guaranteed under the law. On 25 January 1975, the Constitution was radically amended to create a socialist one party state through the fourth amendment. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman became the President and the only legal political party became the Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League (abbreviated as BAKSAL), which translated as the ‘Bangladesh Farmers Workers People’s League’.

The country was transformed into a formal one party state under a state of emergency with no fundamental rights. Censorship was imposed in the press. Many newspapers were banned while the four largest dailies were nationalized by the state. All politicians, civil servants and military officers were ordered to join BAKSAL.

According to Kamal Hossain, he offered to resign on several occasions. Two MPs did in fact resign to protest the creation of BAKSAL, including M. A. G. Osmani and Mainul Hosein. Kamal Hossain continued to serve in the cabinet as Foreign Minister even after the formation of BAKSAL. On BAKSAL, Hossain has said “Till 1971 I had not seen any differences between Mujib Bhai (the friend) and Bangabandhu (the leader). After 1972, he became the head of state. But, he never was both the head of the state and head of the party simultaneously. That change came later during the formation of BAKSAL. And that happened in a very complex situation. Through what dynamics he (Mujib) changed I cannot understand”. Hossain continued to serve as Foreign Minister until Sheikh Mujib’s assassination during a military coup in 1975. At the time, Kamal Hossain was visiting Yugoslavia and did not return to Bangladesh. He refused to join the martial law government and moved to Oxford.

Footnotes

S. A. Karim, Sheikh Mujib: Triumph and Tragedy (UPL Books 2022)

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, The Unfinished Memoirs. Translated by Fakrul Alam. (Penguin/Viking 2012) p. xxvi. ISBN 978-0-670-08546-0.

Lawrence B. Lesser, ‘Economic Reconstruction after Independence’. In James Heitzman; Robert Worden (eds.). A Country Study: Bangladesh. Library of Congress Federal Research Division (September 1988)

Kamal Hossain Interview (Alal o Dulal blog, 2014)

Famine in South Asia: Political economy of mass starvation by M. Alamgir (Oelgeschlager, Gunn & Hain 1980)

Moudud Ahmed, Bangladesh: Era of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (6th Edition, UPL Books 2017)