Awal Mia

"Even if you give me a hundred times money on a Friday, I will not work."
Awal Mia was born on Monday, June 5th, 1967 in Mochpara village of Jatrapur Union, Muradnagar Police Station, Comilla District. His father's name was late Mohor Ali, and his mother's name was late Anwara Begum. He grew up in an extremely poor family from his childhood. The martyr's family includes his wife, six daughters, and one son. Awal Mia loved his six daughters very much. He used to say to his daughters, "You are my dearest. The moments spent together with you are the most precious for the family."
His youngest daughter, Afsana, says, "My father used to stay with me until the moment he was martyred. Every time we ate, he would leave some food on my plate and say, 'This is for my daughter. I don't know if you've eaten. Sit with me and eat a little, my child.' Father was the only breadwinner for our family. We are six sisters. Father had a lot of love for all of us. Father often used to say, 'When I am old and unable to work, my daughters will take care of me. Take care of my son Habib. Take care of my mother.'"
The martyr was the sole earner for his family. A neighbor of the martyr said, "Uncle was a very good man. He did not care about sun, rain, cold, or heat. It is said that good people leave the world quickly, perhaps the martyrdom of Shaheed Awal Mia is proof of that."
The merchant says, "Uncle was very responsible towards his work."
Career
The martyr's income was hand-to-mouth. Awal Mia was a mason's helper by profession. Once the call to prayer was heard, it was impossible to get him to work any longer. His employer said about him, "Uncle was very responsible towards his work. However, he was very strict religiously. If the sound of the call to prayer from the mosque reached his ears, we could not get him to work. He would go to the mosque immediately. He would not work in any way on Fridays due to the Jummah prayers. Once, to test him, I told him that I would give him double or triple the money. I would let him go to the mosque when the call to prayer was heard. But he did not agree. He told me, 'Even if you give me a hundred times the money on a Friday, I will not work. Because Friday is a day of Eid for the believers. It is a day of worship. I want to give this day only to the Almighty Allah.'" The martyr's family did not have any cultivable land. However, they had a small amount of ancestral residential land. On which Shaheed Awal Mia built a permanent residence for his family with a tin fence. Due to the lack of financial stability in the family, he came to the capital in his youth. Sometimes he earned extra by carrying sacks in cement shops.
How Shaheed Awal Mia Was Martyred
On July 1, the anti-discrimination student movement began, demanding the reform of the quota system in government jobs. Within a month, they overthrew the Sheikh Hasina government, which had been in power for more than 15 years. In a month of widespread violence, nearly 800 people died. In the face of a massive public movement, the then Prime Minister of Bangladesh, the murderer Sheikh Hasina, resigned on Monday, August 5, and fled the country.
Friday, July 19, 2024. The movement was then raging across the country. At the behest of the killer Hasina, the Awami terrorists became even more active in suppressing the movement. They tried their best to make the situation murky by vandalizing, firing, and throwing hand grenades all around. To thwart the movement, Awami League cadres set fire to a metro rail station in Dhaka. They also vandalized the public transport authority building. At least 66 people were killed by the killer police that day. About 900 prisoners were released after 'capturing' a jail in Narsingdi, and about 80 firearms and more than a thousand rounds of ammunition were looted. At one point, the police and Chhatra League helmet forces, subservient to the autocrat, carried out brutal shootings and massacres of students across the country.
In particular, the cannibals were divided into various points in the Jatrabari area of Dhaka and indiscriminately opened fire on students, Muslims, and common people. The Awami League forces, the man-eaters, were seen patrolling the alleys with domestic weapons. Shaheed Awal Mia finished his meal after the Jummah prayers and went out for a walk. He stood in front of Kutubkhali High School after hearing the sound of gunfire and shouting. He was startled to see the police and Awami terrorists patrolling. He noticed that the police were killing students like birds by shooting. It was 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Suddenly, the killer police saw the martyr on the street and shot him from a distance. Before he could understand anything, three bullets from the man-eaters pierced Awal Mia's body. People from the neighborhood rescued him from the street at the risk of their lives and took him home.
At first, neither Awal Mia nor his youngest daughter Afsana could understand that he had been shot in the body. Hearing the neighbors' words, they thought that his body had been hit by pellets. That is why Shaheed Awal was staying at his own house after receiving initial treatment from the local pharmacy. Gradually his stomach swelled up. At one point, when his normal breathing was disrupted, his youngest daughter and her disabled son-in-law took him to the nearby Unique Hospital. Even then, the doctors could not identify the bullet lodged in his body. Meanwhile, his condition gradually deteriorated. Finally, Awal Mia was taken to Mugda Medical. There, after examination, it was learned that the bullet lodged in his body was in Awal Mia's stomach. However, as a long time had passed, the operation was quite difficult.
With the permission of the family, the martyr was taken to the operation theater. After the operation, the wise, patriotic Awal Mia realized that he might not have much time left. He called his youngest daughter and wife and said, "Take care of my only son Habib (18). I may not survive." Shortly after that, on Sunday, July 21, 2024, at 6:30 am, the great hero, patriotic, and radiant martyr Md. Awal Mia joined the ranks of the martyrs while undergoing treatment. The body was later taken to his village home in Comilla district. After the funeral, amidst everyone's tears, Shaheed Awal Mia was laid to rest forever in the family graveyard. The martyr's wife and his son Habib Mia have been left destitute after losing the only breadwinner of the family. A burning family lamp was extinguished by the killer's bullet. How cruel they are! What do they gain by killing an ordinary old man? Is there no sympathy in the hearts of the killers? Were the killer Hasina and her group ever human? Will they not be human?
How is the family of Shaheed Awal Mia?
After losing Shaheed Awal Mia, his family is now lost. With the only earning member of the family martyred, the family is now completely dependent on others. The only son, Habib, is eighteen years old. He has not been able to join any work yet. His wife says, "Nothing is left for our family. How will we eat? How will we live? I can't understand!"
Shaheed Awal Mia: A Brief Profile
Name: Awal Mia
Occupation: Day Laborer
Date of Birth & Age: 05-06-1967
Time of Injury: 19 July 2024, 3:00 PM
Date of Martyrdom: 21-07-2024, 6:30 AM
Place of Martyrdom: Mugda Medical College Hospital
Burial: In his native village
Grave GPS Location: Link
Permanent Address: Mochagora, Jatrabari, Cumilla
Father: Mohor Ali
Mother: Anwara
House & Property Status
A tin-roofed house and a small piece of homestead land
Children's Information
Six daughters (all married) and one son. The only son, Habib (18), is unemployed.
Proposals
1. Employment opportunities could be arranged for the martyr’s son.
2. The martyr’s wife could be provided with monthly or one-time financial assistance.