The Leftists

MN Roy and Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed

Jyoti Bosu

Comrade(s) Promod Dasgupta and Bankim Mukherjee

Barin Datta, Farhad, Moni Singha, Khoka Ray, Anil Mukherjee (seated) Manjurul Khan, Khoka Ray, Saifuddin Manik, Nahid, Amjad Hossain

Deben Shikder (CP of East Bangla)

  Activist for independent East Bangla since 1956.

Mohammad Toyaha (CPEP)

Khoka Ray

Amal Sen

Veteran Communist Leader Comrade Amal Sen is no more. The legendary comrade Sen was 90 when he breathed his last at 2 p.m. at the Dhaka Community Hospital on Friday, 17th January, 2003.

Early life

Born in a Zaminder family of Narail in the village Afara in 1912, comrade Sen joined the revolutionary terrorist movement under Anushilan to fight against the British imperialism when he was just a student of class IX. He studied chemistry as honors subject in his BSc class in Daulatpur BL College in 1933, but gave up formal studies to become a full-time worker of the then Communist Party of India (CPI). He was given the charge of organizing the party in the region of Narail. He became full member of the party in 1934. He was absorbed as a regional committee member in the party hierarchy in 1937. He was one of the leading organizers of the Tebhaga Movemnet of 1946 and was the key figure of the movement in Narail and its adjacent region.

After the partition of India in 1947 Comrade Sen stayed back in the then East Bengal, a province of newly created state called Pakistan according to Mountbaten Plan to keep up the communist movement in Pakistan as per decision of the party. During Pakistan days when Party was banned he went underground. He suffered imprisonment in Pakistani jails for many years. Through communist movement Comrade Sen served his motherland and its people, the poor and laborers for over 70 years. During these struggling years he had only one dream 'to establish socialism' in the country and to emancipate the common people of his country from hunger and poverty.

He was a fighting spirit of his party men in particular, but of toiling mass of Bangladesh in general. Although he belonged to, generally speaking, Maoist group of Communists in Bangladesh when the CPI was divided following the Indo-Chinese War in mid-sixties, he commanded profound respect from all sections of communists and nationalist leaders.

In Bangladesh

When the Pakistani occupation army cracked down on the unarmed people of East Pakistan on 25th March, comrade Sen organized local resistance and took active part in the war of liberation in 1971. He was elected the general secretary of the Leninist faction of CPB (communist party of Bangladesh) formed with the union of three centers of communist movement. He became the General Secretary of United Communist League in 1986 formed as a result of integration of six communist factions. After the formation of unified 'Workers Party' he was elected president of the party in 1992 and again in 1995 holding this post till 2000. He then continued to be the central committee member till his death.

I saw him first in 1971 during our difficult time in Calcutta where he was then busy organizing war of liberation, formulating war strategy, collecting logistics supports including arms for carrying out war from within the country with his comrades, supporters and sympathizers. I always admired his intellect, support and dedication to the cause of our liberation war, his untiring fight for the common men for their emancipation. Hats off to our great comrade. Long live comrade Sen, long live revolution.

Dr Ajoy Roy

Siraj Sikdar

Sarbohara Party