On 16 May 1976, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani led the historic Farakka March in protest against India’s construction of the Farakka Barrage on the Ganges River. Despite being 94 years old and hospitalized in Dhaka, Bhashani personally led the 64-mile march from Rajshahi to Kansat near the Bangladesh-India border. The demonstration drew hundreds of thousands of participants demanding Bangladesh’s fair share of Ganges water and denouncing what Bhashani viewed as India’s hegemonic control over transboundary rivers.

The article situates the Farakka March within Bhashani’s lifelong struggle against colonialism, feudal exploitation, and foreign domination. It recounts his leadership in peasant movements in Assam, his role in founding the Awami Muslim League in 1949, and his opposition to U.S.-Pakistan defense pacts in the 1950s. The author argues that Bhashani’s anti-imperialist stance and advocacy for the oppressed made him uniquely capable of organizing the Farakka protest.

According to the text, Bhashani saw the barrage as a geopolitical tool threatening Bangladesh’s environment and economy. The march remains a symbol of resistance against regional dominance and the defense of national sovereignty.