March 1971: The Killing of Jyotirmoy Guhathakurta

Just days before our Independence, West Pakistani troops embarked on a systematic torture and killing of some of the brightest minds of our country. This act of genocide was carried out in the hopes of destroying the future nation builders by maiming them intellectually.

On March 25, 1971, armed with tanks, mortars and armoured vehicles a Pakistani military convoy picked up Professor Jyotirmoy Guhathakurta, the then provost of Jagannath Hall, after cordoning off the entire Dhaka University campus with tanks, mortars and armed vehicles.

Bullet-hit Professor Guhathakurta died in the hospital two days later.

Guhathakurta will always be remembered for his work ‘Classical Myths in the Plays of Swinburne, Bridges, Sturges, Moore and Eliot’. In this video, Dr Meghna Guhathakurta recalls the very last days of her father.