Sylhet’s Revolutionary: The Life and Legacy of Mofiz Ali

Sangram Datta: On a misty morning in the hills of Shamshernagar, the laborers move through the tea gardens, their baskets heavy, their backs bent, their faces etched with exhaustion and resilience. The dew glints on freshly plucked leaves, and the air smells of wet earth and green foliage. Decades ago, in these same fields, a man named Mofiz Ali walked among these workers, not just as a visitor but as a comrade. To the laborers and peasants of Sylhet, his name is synonymous with courage, sacrifice, and relentless advocacy. They call him “Revolutionary Mofiz Ali.”

Early Life: Seeds of Conscience
Mofiz Ali was born on December 10, 1927, in the village of Shrisurya Dhopatila in Kamalganj, in what was then the Moulvibazar subdivision of Assam Province under British India. The eldest of six children, he grew up in a modest household. His father, Azfar Ali, managed the family’s small landholdings, and his mother, Nurjahan Bibi, instilled in him values of resilience and empathy. From an early age, he was acutely aware of inequality.

He would later recall seeing tea laborers trudging home after a day’s work, earning barely enough to feed their families, while the estates prospered. “Those images never left me,” he wrote in his diary. “I promised myself that one day, I would not stand idle in the face of such injustice.”

In his youth, Mofiz Ali was drawn toward Islamic thought, reflecting the spiritual environment of his village. Yet political currents in East Pakistan—the struggle for language recognition, social justice, and equity—would soon redirect his path. The Language Movement of 1952 left an indelible mark on him. He witnessed ordinary citizens, students, and teachers alike, taking to the streets to demand recognition for their mother tongue, Bengali. The courage of people who risked imprisonment and even death to preserve their identity ignited a political consciousness in Mofiz Ali that would never fade.

Student Activism: The Fire Awakens
By the mid-1950s, Mofiz Ali was a student at MC College in Sylhet. Known for his eloquence and fiery rhetoric, he quickly became a prominent student leader. In 1956, during a student rally demanding justice, he climbed onto a makeshift podium and addressed the crowd with unflinching courage. “We will not bow to injustice,” he declared. “Our voices will be heard.”

The authorities, alarmed by his boldness, expelled him in his final year. Though he never completed his formal education, the incident solidified his path. The young man who once aspired to conventional success now dedicated his life to a broader mission: the emancipation of workers and peasants, and the fight against feudal and imperial exploitation.

Political Awakening: Joining the Struggle
Mofiz Ali first joined the East Pakistan Youth League and later the East Pakistan Students’ Union. By 1957, he became a member of the National Awami Party (NAP) under the legendary Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani. Simultaneously, he immersed himself in the East Pakistan Peasants’ Association and trade union movements. These early experiences shaped him into a multifaceted leader who understood that social change required both grassroots mobilization and political organization.

He witnessed firsthand the brutal working conditions in the tea gardens of Shamshernagar. Laborers lived in cramped, poorly constructed huts, worked long hours for meager pay, and had little access to healthcare or education. “Their suffering became my mission,” he would later say. “Without justice for the laborer, there is no justice in society.”

The Tea Laborers’ Movement
On April 5, 1964, under his leadership, the East Pakistan Tea Laborers’ Union was officially founded. The movement rapidly gained momentum. When authorities filed a case against Mofiz Ali, nearly 10,000 tea laborers marched from Shamshernagar to Moulvibazar subdivision in protest. The sheer force of their collective action compelled the officials to withdraw the case.

The tea gardens became a microcosm of his revolutionary vision. He was not a distant politician; he ate with laborers, walked alongside them, and shared their hardships. Villagers recall him inspecting tea plucking techniques, discussing wages, and teaching workers about their legal rights. “He was one of us,” one elderly laborer said, “not someone looking down from a podium.”

Peasant Uprisings and National Struggles
Mofiz Ali’s work was not limited to tea laborers. In 1963, he played a leading role in the Balishira Peasant Movement in Srimangal, where farmers rose against exploitative landlords. During the mass uprising of 1969, he again emerged as a pivotal figure in Sylhet district, delivering speeches in rain-soaked streets, organizing rallies, and strategizing with fellow activists.

His commitment came at a personal cost. Over the decades, he was imprisoned seven times—1954, 1960, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1969, and 1972—spending nearly six years behind bars. But imprisonment never deterred him. His letters from jail, now part of local archives, brim with optimism, strategy, and unwavering faith in the people’s power. “The walls may confine my body,” he wrote, “but they cannot confine our movement.”

Ideological Commitment and Political Life
During ideological splits within the communist movement in 1967, Mofiz Ali opposed Khrushchevite revisionism and joined the East Pakistan Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist). He also led the Bhashani faction of the National Awami Party in Sylhet. Even after Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, he continued his advocacy, organizing labor in tea, rubber, hotels, and rickshaw services, and joining the National Democratic Front in 1993, where he served as central vice president.

In 1986, he contested parliamentary elections as a candidate of the labor movement, facing stiff competition from the Awami League. Though he lost, his campaign was remembered for its grassroots organization, honesty, and commitment to the marginalized.

Teacher, Writer, and Chronicler
Mofiz Ali was also a teacher and writer. He kept detailed diaries, penned essays, and contributed to newspapers like Dawn, Ittefaq, Sangbad, and Ganashakti. His first book, Examples of Imperialist Exploitation in Pakistan, was an incisive critique of systemic oppression. Other writings, including “State Language and Regional Autonomy” and “The History of May Day,” combined political insight with social consciousness. Even his short story, A Gamchha (A Towel), depicted the quiet tragedies of ordinary life, reflecting his deep empathy.

Final Days and Legacy

On August 30, 2008, after attending a peasant rally in Kulaura, Mofiz Ali was mysteriously struck outside his home. Some said it was a bus without headlights; others suspected darker motives. A stroke followed, and after weeks of hospitalization at Sylhet Osmani Medical College, he passed away on October 10, 2008, at the age of 81.

Today, Sylhet remembers him not merely as a political leader but as a symbol of resistance. The tea gardens, the village squares, and the small streets of Shrisurya Dhopatila echo with stories of his courage, integrity, and compassion. His diaries, essays, and the memories of those he inspired continue to guide laborers, peasants, and activists.

In Sylhet, Mofiz Ali’s name is a call to action, a reminder that justice is not given—it is won. His life teaches that the struggle of the people, when guided by conviction and courage, can withstand oppression and endure across generations.

As the sun sets once more over the tea gardens, one can almost hear his words carried on the wind: “Organize, fight, and never forget the dignity of your labor. The struggle is ours, and ours alone.”