Selina Parvin: A Martyred Intellectual and an Enduring Inspiration for Generations

 
Selina Parvin remains the only woman journalist martyred during Bangladesh’s Liberation War in 1971. She was an independent spirit, a courageous writer, and a mother who endured extraordinary struggle. She served as Editor of Begum, Lalona and Shilalipi. Born on 31 March 1931 in Feni, her father Abidur Rahman was a teacher. Her given name was Monowara Begum, which she legally changed to Selina Parvin in 1954.

Selina Parvin’s passion for literature emerged early. While was in Class-Six, she began writing stories and poems. But village superstitions abruptly halted her studies, and at only 14 she was married against her will in 1945. That marriage lasted ten years; she was divorced in 1955. She attempted to resume her education, appearing privately for the matriculation exam in 1949, though she did not pass that time. Her literary journey began in 1945 through poetry, later evolving into essays and reports published in Begum, Azad, Sangbad, Ittefaq, Purbodesh, and other newspapers.

Selina Parvin arrived in Dhaka in 1956. The next year she trained in nursing at Mitford Hospital. In 1959, she joined Rokeya Hall at Dhaka University as a matron, leaving the position after disagreements with the authorities. She later taught at Azimpur Baby Home (1960–61). In 1962, she married a politician under family pressure, giving birth to her son Sumon Zahid the following year. That marriage also ended in 1968. Selina briefly worked at the Salimullah Orphanage in 1965. In 1966, she joined Begum as the executive secretary to the editor. In 1967, she moved to Lalona, handling advertisement, collections, and fieldwork alone. Her salary was often irregular for the work.

In 1969, taking loans from friends and well-wishers, she launched her own magazine, Shilalipi. It was her creative child—edited and published single-handedly. Its contributors included prominent intellectuals like Shahidullah Kaiser, Munier Chowdhury, Zahir Raihan and Dr. Borhanuddin Khan. With the writings of leading intellectuals and its unmistakably pro-independence stance, Shilalipi quickly earned widespread attention and brought Selina Parvin into close circles of the Dhaka intelligentsia.

Bangladesh was ablaze with the political upheavals of 1969. Selina Parvin became actively involved in the mass-uprising of 1969. She joined rallies and women’s processions with her young son. Her association with progressive intellectuals strengthened her interest in socialist ideas.

Then came 1971. During the Liberation War, Selina Parvin remained in Dhaka. Young freedom fighters often visited her home at night. She supported them with food, clothes, medicine, and money—much of it coming from the sale of Shilalipi. The Pakistani regime imposed strict control on the press; Lalona neared closure, and Shilalipi faced censorship. One issue, designed by Hashem Khan, was banned; later clearance came with conditions to alter the cover. She published a final issue around August–September with a new design featuring her nephew’s photograph. The content was unmistakably pro-independence—and it drew the attention of collaborators.

Before she could publish another issue of Shilalipi, Selina Parvin herself disappeared. It was 13 December 1971—just three days before Bangladesh would achieve independence. Many regions of the country had already been liberated. At that time, journalist Selina Parvin was living in Siddeshwari, at 115 New Circular Road (now 29 Shaheed Journalist Selina Parvin Road). She had just sent her son, Sumon Zahid, to the rooftop to play with her younger brother Uzir Uddin after his bath and was preparing lunch in the kitchen.

It was around 1:30 in the afternoon. Dhaka was under curfew. Soldiers patrolled the streets. Leaflets urging the Pakistani forces to surrender were being dropped from aircraft overhead. Suddenly, she heard the sound of vehicles approaching. A Fiat microbus and a truck of the E.P.R.TC halted in front of filmmaker Khan Ataur Rahman’s house across the street. Several Al-Badr operatives forced open the main gate and entered. They were dressed in identical uniforms, their faces covered.

After searching the neighbouring flat, they knocked on Selina Parvin’s door. She opened it herself. They confirmed her identity and spoke with her briefly. Before being taken away, she placed her hand on her son’s head and said gently: “Sumon, have lunch with your mama (uncle). I’ll go and come back soon.” Those were the last words she ever said to him.

Later it became known that the group was led by Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin. On 17 December, Shamsher Chowdhury—brother of martyred intellectuals Munier Chowdhury and Kabir Chowdhury—informed Selina’s brothers Uzir and Mohsin that her body had been found at the Rayerbazar slaughtering ground.

On 18 December, Selina Parvin’s body was found at the Rayerbazar slaughtering ground. When she was taken from her home on 13 December, she had been wearing a white sari, blouse, and white socks. These details allowed her brothers, Uzir and Mohsin, to identify her among many others. Like numerous intellectuals killed around 14 December, she, too, fell victim to the brutality of the Al-Badr collaborators. She was laid to rest on 18 December in the section of the Azimpur graveyard reserved for the martyrs.

Selina Parvin had been abducted from her home on the afternoon of 13 December. What happened to her afterward remained unknown for nearly 35 years. The truth was later recounted to her only son, Sumon Zahid, by freedom fighter Delwar Hossain. He, too, had been captured. But because Selina Parvin was taken away first, he ultimately survived. In a brief moment of opportunity, he managed to slip free, regain his awareness, and escape by running.

Later, freedom fighter Delwar Hossain recounted these events to Sumon Zahid. He explained that during the three days they were held at Rayerbazar and the Mohammadpur Physical Centre, the detainees were denied food, rest, and even basic necessities. Many were subjected to severe mistreatment, especially those identified as writers, teachers, or professionals. His testimony revealed how intellectuals were systematically targeted during the final days of the war.

In her final moments at the Rayerbazar killing ground, Selina Parvin understood what was unfolding. With profound anguish, she pleaded: “You are my brothers in faith. You are like fathers to me. Let me go. I have an eight-year-old child at home.” But her appeals were ignored, and she was killed shortly afterward.

On 16 December, the red-and-green flag of Bangladesh rose over a free nation. Selina Parvin did not live to see that dawn, yet her sacrifice is woven into the very fabric of the flag—into the red circle that symbolizes the blood of countless martyrs.

A road stretching from Dhaka’s Moghbazar intersection to the Mouchak intersection, as well as another in her birthplace—Feni’s Trunk Road—has been named “Martyred Intellectual Journalist Selina Parvin Road” in her honour. On 14 December 1991, the Day of the Martyred Intellectuals, the Postal Department of the Government of Bangladesh issued a commemorative stamp bearing Selina Parvin’s name. She remains a symbol of courage, a beacon for women and generations to come. Yet a pressing question lingers: how much does today’s generation know about this dauntless daughter of the nation?

   References

1.    Bangladesher Muktijuddhe Shaheed Sangbadik, Md. Shah Alamgir, Press Institute of Bangladesh
2.    Testimony of Sumon Zahid, son of Selina Parvin, at International Crimes Tribunal-2


Emran Emon is Sub-Editor at
The Asian Age and In-Charge of Saturday Post. He can be reached at [email protected]