পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (প্রথম খণ্ড).pdf/৪৬৭

বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ প্রথম খণ্ড

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think about it sincerely when you place this before you. I know what I have said, and there will be papers who may support you here and there, who will say, “Ah, it is a voice of a disappointed man who speaks" because he has not been the Prime Minister. What do these papers know about me? I do not like to say anything on this but I would say this much definitely and I speak from my conscience that this was no charm for me. As a matter of fact, at a particular time you, Sir, thought that I could be the Prime Minister of Pakistan. I do not put it further than that. I was engrossed with that idea. I said: can one fail shoulder carry that burden-this great burden of trying to rescue Pakistan from the morass into which it has fallen? I am glad, Sir, that the Honorable Prime Minister has undertaken that colossal task and I humbly pray that may be succeed in this task because after all it is one and one aim before us whether we are on that side or on this side, namely, that Pakistan should succeed. Sir, it is on this account that the question of motives becomes Somewhat relevant. I understand, Sir, that the idea which first germinated in the mind or at least so far as I know-I do not know where it germinated but Malik Firoz Khan Noon claims the credit for the first germination-it germinated in his mind. It was somehow or other to find a scheme which will destroy the domination of East Bengal-'the domination of East Bengal", I use the word adversely. Therefore, they decided that let us have parity. They were always thinking all the time on that line, not on political lines; they were thinking all the time of provincial lines. But it happened so that the majority in East Bengal did not believe by virtue of this majority to do things in the manner in which it was unpleasant to the persons who came from this side, and they felt it necessary that this should be made away with. I do not know whether at that particular time there was any idea at the back of their mind that this would result in ultimately the domination of the Punjab both in the Centre and in the Unit. I do not want to deal with that point. All that I wish to fell you now that there are reasons for suspicion regarding that and that suspicion has got to be alloyed. I would ask the Honorable Prime Minister please to consider it because I think he is a gentleman who is able to think clearly whether the act which has recently been done, namely, for capturing both the offices for the Punjab, not for West Pakistan alone but for Punjab because you have adopted the Governor-General from the Punjab, whether this will alleviate that suspicion that Punjab was out to dominate the Centre and the Unit. Do you not think that it would have been far wiser, far wiser for you to restrain your hand from it. Even it that was your idea, would it not have been far wiser, if for the sake of One-Unit, you had showed yourself to be self-sacrificing and that you should have restrained yourself from taking up the position which has been handed over on a platter by somebody. Do you think that it would not have been far better for the sake of parity that you should have given it up and showed the world, “Look at our bona fide, we were offered but we refused". But alas! You could not see that how we were jeopardizing all these principles for which we had been fighting and which will make for the stability of Pakistan. Alas! You could not see that you were antagonizing a very large section. Now the whole section of East Bengal is against you. You could not see that suspicion will be aroused on that side regarding your bona fides. You could not see that the result of this could be that the people and the papers and your supporters in West Pakistan, who are short-sighted, will consider this a West Pakistani victory. You could not see that they will consider that East Bengal has been denied its