Chattogram, July 19 (V7N) — Poet and political thinker Farhad Mazhar has raised strong objections over Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus’s preference for reforming the 1972 constitution instead of drafting a new one, calling such an approach “extremely harmful” to the future of Bangladesh.
 
Speaking Friday afternoon at the Chattogram Press Club during a memorial lecture organized by "July Network" in honor of Shaheed Abu Sayeed-Wasim, Mazhar said, “Those who suggest that the 1972 constitution can be reformed and retained are not only misguided but are also pushing for a return to Delhi’s dominance and fascist rule.”
 
He argued that the individuals who wrote the original constitution were elected under the Pakistani regime and had no revolutionary legitimacy. “Why should that constitution be sacred? Was it because Delhi dictated it? The liberation war of 1971 was not fought for such a constitution,” he said.
 
Mazhar stated that the war was fought for independence based on equality, human dignity, and social justice—not for socialism, secularism, or Bengali nationalism. According to him, these elements were imposed through the constitution after the war, bypassing public opinion and reinstating the old bureaucratic machinery, including the police, judiciary, and military.
 
He added that after the July uprising, student movements demanded a new declaration to form the basis of a fresh constitution. However, no dialogue was held with the people, and the public was left out of the process. “A people’s republic must be founded on a new social contract through mass participation, not on top-down decisions,” Mazhar said.
 
He further stated that the Awami League should have faced justice within six months of the power transition. Referring to regional discrimination, he criticized the narrative around Gopalganj, saying, “Is Gopalganj outside of Bangladesh? Why are questions being raised about why students went there? Even Khaleda Zia once asked, ‘Are you from Gopali?’ — it shows Gopalganj is being treated like a separate zone.”
 
The event was presided over by Zahidul Karim Kachi, secretary of the Chattogram Press Club. Among others, Chattogram Metropolitan Journalists Union general secretary Saleh Noman also spoke at the program.
 
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