Nahid Islam's claim that 'Ziaur Rahman and many freedom fighters opposed the 1972 Constitution' is misleading

What's the claim?

On Thursday, April 30, 2026, on the 25th day of the 13th National Parliament's first session, National Citizen Party (NCP) convener and Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam delivered a roughly 34-minute speech during the discussion on the Thanksgiving Motion to the President's address. Among other points he said:

"In the 1972 Constitution, it was stated: nationalism, Bengali nationalism, secularism, democracy, and socialism. And Major Ziaur Rahman rebelled against this."

"Badruddin Umar opposed the 1972 Constitution. Maulana Bhashani opposed the 1972 Constitution. Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed opposed the 1972 Constitution. Hundreds of freedom fighters also opposed the 1972 Constitution, Honorable Speaker."

National daily Kaler Kantho carried the line as a Facebook headline on May 1, 2026 — 'Ziaur Rahman and many freedom fighters opposed the 1972 Constitution' — which spread widely on social media ^[1][2].

Verdict: Misleading — here's why

Nahid Islam's claim is historically misleading. It is true that Maulana Bhashani's NAP boycotted the 1973 election and that Badruddin Umar critiqued the constitution. But the claim that Ziaur Rahman opposed the 1972 Constitution is unsupported by the historical record, the naming of Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed is factually incorrect, and there is no documentation for 'hundreds of freedom fighters' opposing the constitution — the documented record points the opposite way. Below are the reasons:

1. Ziaur Rahman was not a politician in 1972

According to Banglapedia, 'In June 1972, [Ziaur Rahman] was made deputy chief of staff of the armed forces of Bangladesh' ^[3]. When the Constitution was adopted on November 4, 1972, Zia held the rank of Colonel and was a serving military officer. He was not a member of any political party, not a member of the Constituent Assembly, and as a serving officer had no public political role. There is no public statement, written record, or historical document showing Zia opposed the Constitution in 1972 ^[3][4].

2. Zia's later amendments operated WITHIN the Constitution

After taking office as President on April 21, 1977, Zia issued a Proclamation Order amending the Constitution's preamble — inserting 'Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim' and replacing 'secularism' with 'absolute trust and faith in Almighty Allah' ^[5]. The 5th Amendment, passed by parliament on April 6, 1979, ratified these changes. But these acts were amendments via the Constitution's own amendment mechanism — not abolition or replacement. Zia never repealed the 1972 Constitution; he operated under it.

3. Nahid himself admits Zia did not abolish the Constitution

In the same speech, Nahid said:

"We had an opportunity to annul this 1972 Constitution in 1975 through the Sepoy-People's Revolution. I would say it was a historic mistake of Ziaur Rahman, Honorable Speaker. With all due respect to him, we missed that opportunity at that time." ^[6]

This is itself an admission — by Nahid's own framing, Zia did not abolish the Constitution but 'missed' the opportunity to do so. In other words, Zia was not an active opponent of the 1972 Constitution — that's Nahid's own position.

4. Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed was a SUPPORTER, not an opponent

The 'Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed' Nahid named (1922–2019) was president of the National Awami Party (Pro-Moscow) and was unambiguously aligned with the Awami League and the Constitution:

• In 1971 he served on the multi-party advisory committee of the Mujibnagar Government convened by Tajuddin Ahmad ^[7]
• In 1973 his NAP joined a 3-party alliance with the Awami League and the Communist Party of Bangladesh ^[8]
• In January 1975 NAP-Muzaffar was instrumental in encouraging passage of the 4th Amendment, which established the one-party BAKSAL ^[8]
• NAP-Muzaffar subsequently merged into BAKSAL ^[9]

In other words, Muzaffar Ahmed was not an opponent of the 1972 Constitution — he was one of its most committed supporters. Nahid's listing of him as an opponent contradicts the documented historical record.

5. Only 3 of 404 Constituent Assembly members dissented — and none were combat freedom fighters

In The Daily Star's '50 Years of Our Constitution' supplement, Kawser Ahmed records that of the 404 members of the Constituent Assembly, only three expressed dissenting opinions on the Constitution Bill ^[10]:

None of them were combat freedom fighters of the Mukti Bahini — all were politicians. Sengupta and Larma criticised specific provisions but none called for abolishing the Constitution.

6. 36 decorated freedom fighters publicly defend the 1972 Constitution

On January 14, 2025, 36 decorated freedom fighters (Bir Sreshtho, Bir Uttam, Bir Bikram, Bir Pratik holders) of the Khetabprapto Muktijoddha Association issued a public statement strongly condemning attempts to scrap the 1972 Constitution and demanding its reinstatement in its original form. They said ^[11]:

"We strongly condemn and protest the vile attempt to abolish the 1972 Constitution, written in the blood of three million martyrs of the great Liberation War of 1971... Under no circumstances must the 1972 Constitution be abolished — rather, our strong demand to the current interim government is that the original 1972 Constitution be reinstated in its exact form."

The public stance of these 36 state-recognised war heroes is the direct opposite of Nahid's 'hundreds of freedom fighters opposed' framing. No historical document, list, or public statement exists demonstrating that 'hundreds of freedom fighters' opposed the 1972 Constitution.

7. Bhashani and Badruddin Umar were 'critics', not 'freedom fighters'

Nahid's other named opponents — Maulana Bhashani's NAP did boycott the 1973 election, and Badruddin Umar did call the constitution 'A Constitution for Perpetual Emergency' ^[4]. But:

• Maulana Bhashani (1880–1976) was an aged political leader, not a 1971 combatant — he spent the war in India
• Badruddin Umar is a Marxist intellectual and writer, not a member of the Mukti Bahini

Neither falls into the 'decorated freedom fighter' category. Moreover, they critiqued specific provisions of the constitution rather than demanding its outright abolition.

Data analysis

Ziaur Rahman's timeline 1971–1981

At no point in his life did Zia abolish or replace the 1972 Constitution — he amended it.

Nahid's claims vs. historical record

Conclusion

NCP convener and Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam, speaking in the 13th National Parliament on April 30, 2026, claimed that Ziaur Rahman and 'hundreds of freedom fighters' had opposed the 1972 Constitution. National daily Kaler Kantho ran the line as a Facebook headline.

FactCheckerLab's investigation finds the claim misleading. In 1972 Zia held the rank of Colonel as Deputy Chief of Army Staff, played no political role, and there is no documented record of public opposition to the Constitution. His later amendments operated within the constitutional framework — he never abolished it. By Nahid's own admission, Zia 'missed' the opportunity to abolish it — calling it a 'historic mistake' — which itself acknowledges Zia was not an active opponent. Comrade Muzaffar Ahmed, named as an opponent, was in fact a key supporter — Mujibnagar adviser, AL alliance partner, and BAKSAL participant. In the 404-member Constituent Assembly only 3 dissented — none of them combat freedom fighters. Conversely, 36 decorated war heroes have publicly demanded preservation of the 1972 Constitution.

For these reasons, FactCheckerLab rates the claim that 'Ziaur Rahman and many freedom fighters opposed the 1972 Constitution' as misleading.

Sources