বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ পঞ্চদশ খণ্ড
Sheikh Mujib left with his colleagues for Lahore on 6 March 1969. I was asked to join the delegation in Lahore and to proceed to Rawalpindi as an adviser. It was also supposed that Dr. Sarwar Murshid and Dr. Muzaffar Ahmed Chowdhury should be requested to join the delegation. Upon reaching Lahore it was learnt that it was proving difficult for agreement to be reached on a common charter of demand as a basic divergence was emerging between the leaders representing the different regions.
Sheikh Mujib had avoided attending the DAC meeting and stayed back in his hotel room on the ground of indisposition. In fact he was keeping away from the discussions, which were tending to run into an impasse as the Punjabi leaders were vigorously opposing the inclusion of the six point autonomy demand in the common charter of demands. It was argued by the Awami League supported by national Awami party that the agreed eight points of the democratic action committee covered both the questions of regional autonomy and the undoing of one unit, since the democratic action Committee had committed itself to a “federal parliamentary government.” It was urged that “federal”, character had to be spelt out and for that purpose it was necessary for the Democratic action committee to take a position on the question of regional autonomy and dissolution of one unit. Chowdhury Muhammad Ali a redoubtable Punjabi a former senior civil servant indeed a former prime minister consistently opposed the adoption of a common position on regional autonomy or dissolution of One unit when it was put to him that it was necessary to spell out what was meant by federal’ he countered by arguing that everyone knew what ‘federal' meant and in any case the meaning could be looked up on the Oxford Dictionary! Sheikh Mujib and the Awami Legue supported by the National Awami insisted on the inclusion of the six Points demand for autonomy in the common charter of demands as a condition for their participation in the Round Table Conference. They pointed out that the Conference had been convened under the pressure of a mass movement. This movement had articulated its constitutional demands which were set out in the 11 point programme. This included regional autonomy on the basis of the six-points formula and dissolution of One Unit.
As a result of such a polarization within the Democratic Action Committee a meeting of the East Pakistan Regional Democratic Action Committee was hurriedly convened at Chamber House. It was impressed upon all the Bengali representatives that given the state of public opinion in the East and the tempo of the 11 point movement the Bengalis at least should adopt a common position on Bengali demands and in particular the demands for full regional autonomy. A unanimous resolution was adopted making a five paint recommendation to the Central Democratic Action Committee Among these five points were full regional autonomy and dismemberment of one unit the central Democratic action Committee had set up a special committee to hammer out if possible a common position on had steadfastly opposed regional autonomy on the basis of Six points. Metaphysics and jurisprudence were invoked to argue that neither the Democratic Action Committee nor Ayub’s legislature had a mandate to deal with the question of regional autonomy. This was countered by the argument that the democratic action committee and the legislature had as much competence to deal with regional autonomy as it did to consider other constitutional amendments which were being proposed.
