From Professor M. Hossain and Professor M. Islam
Sir, We have recently come across a letter from Professor S. S. Husain. Vice-Chancellor, Rajshahi University, which appeared in your columns on July 7. 1971. We feel that this letter does not really merit a refutation, but we were persuaded to write this letter only because a communication from a Vice-Chancellor might mislead some of your readers.

Professor Sajjad Husain was residing in Rajshahi University Campus from the middle of March till the third week of April, 1971. The Pakistan Army captured Rajshahi and moved into the campus on the evening of April 13. Professor Husain may be unaware of what has happened to many of his colleagues who responded to his radio appeal and returned to the campus but the tragic end of Mr Habibur Rahman, of the Mathematics Department, and Mr S. R. Samaddar of the Language Department, should not have escaped his memory. These two men were dragged out of their homes by the Army when Professor Husain was still in the campus.

What might have happened to his Urdu-speaking colleagues seems to cause greater concern to Professor Sajjad Husain than what has actually happened to several of his Bengali colleagues and other University employees. But was there really any cause for such concern? Even Professor Husain cannot but admit that no “dissenter” or Urdu-speaking teacher of any University or College was killed or suffered any humiliation when Mukti Fauj controlled the towns and the countryside of East Bengal.

Yours, etc.
M. HOSSAIN. Professor of Economics, Rajshahi University,
M. ISLAM. Professor of Bengali, Rajshahi University,
Care of Bangladesh Mission,
9 Circus Avenue,
Calcutta 17.