Mohammad Mustafa Kamal (), better known as Shaheed Sipahi Mustafa Kamal, was a

sepoy ''Sepoy'' () is a term related to ''sipahi'', denoting professional Indian infantrymen, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire and the Maratha. In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its Euro ...

in the

Bangladesh Army The Bangladesh Army () is the land warfare branch, and the largest component of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The primary mission of the Army is to defend the land of Bangladesh from any external attack. Control of personnel and operations is ad ...

during the

Liberation War Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...

. He was born on 16 December 1947 in Hajipur village of Daulatkhan upazila under

Bhola Bhola may refer to: *Bhola District, Barisal Division, Bangladesh **Bhola Sadar Upazila, sub-division of the district **Bhola Island, largest island of Bangladesh covering the district **Bhola (town), on the island *''Bholaa'', 2023 Indian action f ...

district. His father, Habibur Rahman was a Havilder. On 18 April 1971, Mostafa Kamal was killed in a defensive battle against the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

in Daruin village of Brahmanbaria. He was posthumously awarded

Bir Sreshtho The Bir Sreshtho (; ), is the highest military award of Bangladesh. It was awarded to seven freedom fighters who showed utmost bravery and died in action for their nation. They are considered martyrs. The other three gallantry awards are named, ...

Biography

Mustafa Kamal was born in 1947 at the Poshchim Hajipur village under Daulatkhana Upazila in

district. His father was a

Havildar Havildar or havaldar ( Hindustani: or (Devanagari), (Perso-Arabic)) is a rank in the Indian and Pakistani armies, equivalent to sergeant. It is not used in cavalry and armoured units, where the equivalent is daffadar. Like a British sergea ...

in the army. Kamal had his education only up to second grade and spent most of his childhood with his father at the Comilla Cantonment. On 16 December 1967, Kamal escaped from his house and joined the

East Bengal Regiment The East Bengal Regiment () is one of the two infantry regiments of the Bangladesh Army, the other being the Bangladesh Infantry Regiment. East Bengal Regiment was founded by Major Abdul Gani. History The East Bengal Regiment was formed on ...

. Mostafa Kamal was a well-known boxer. During mid-March in 1971, he was transferred from Comilla Cantonment to the headquarters of the 4th

at Brahmanbaria. As the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

started in 1971,

had taken the control of Brahmanbaria with three Defence bases at

Ashuganj Ashuganj or Ashugonj () is a town in Brahmanbaria District of Chittagong Division, Bangladesh in Meghna River delta. Its altitude is 10 meters (36 feet). The city is known for the Port of Ashuganj and for its power plant which generates much of th ...

, Ujanishwar, and Anderson lake. But, The

Pakistani Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

continued attacking with their, heavy artillery in these places. As a result,

retreated back to

Akhaura Akhaura () is an upazila of Brahmanbaria District, a district under Chattogram, Bangladesh. Akhaura Upazila has an area of 99.28 km2. The main river that run through this upazila is the Titas River. Akhaura played an important historical r ...

, Shanti Nagar, and Darwin. 2nd Platoon was sent to Darwin to reinforce the troops. Mostafa Kamal was a soldier of this platoon. Major Shafayat Jamil verbally declared him as the Lance Naek and gave him the responsibility of leading a team. He died at Darwin on 18 April 1971 during a battle against the Pakistan Army. He was buried at Darwin. He was posthumously rewarded as "Bir Shrestho", the highest gallantry award in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. A postage stamp was also published to pay respect to him.

Battle of Daruin

Mostafa Kamal was a Sepoy of the 4th

. At the start of March, the 4th Regiment was moved from

Comilla Cantonment Cumilla Cantonment () is a military station of the Bangladesh Army, located near Comilla, Bangladesh. History During the Second World War, a jungle warfare school was set up at Comilla by the 14th Indian Infantry Division, after the mid-1942 A ...

to Brahmanbaria. After the incidents of 25 March, the 4th Regiment successfully brought Brahmanbaria under control. Under the leadership of Major Shafayat Jamil, they revolted against the Pakistani officers and formed a defense Camp at Brahmanbaria. They continued fighting against the

and eventually arrived at

. At

, the 4th Regiment set their camp in Gangashagar and Talshahar. To avoid any unexpected attacks from the Pakistanis, the 2nd Platoon of the company "Alpha" was sent to Darwin village. Mostafa Kamal was one of the section commanders of the 2nd Platoon. On 16 April,

started to approach the Regiment camp. They were coming over the railway of the Comilla-Aakhaura root. The regiment also reconciled their position at Darwin. They settled on their trenches near a pond. Mostafa took the rightmost position. On 17 April, Pakistanis opened fire. Major Shafayat Jamil strengthened his force by sending the 11th Platoon of company Delta to Darwin. At around 12 pm, the Pakistanis attacked from West. Another part of the Pakistan Army attacked

Mukti Bahini The Mukti Bahini, initially called the Mukti Fauj, also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was a big tent armed guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military personnel, paramilitary personnel and civilians during the Ba ...

from behind. As a result, the Regiment decided to retreat from Darwin. Mostafa Kamal took the responsibility of covering for his fellow fighters. Most of the fighters retreated to a safer position as Kamal relentlessly kept firing with his

light machine gun A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridge (firearms), cartridges of the same caliber as the othe ...

. He kept on fighting until he ran out of bullets and was surrounded. He was bayoneted to death. He, along with 20 to 40 other Mukti Bahini soldiers, was killed in this battle.

Legacy

In Kamalpur, a football stadium named Bir Sreshtho Shaheed Sipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium was named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamal, Mostafa 1947 births 1971 deaths 20th-century Bangladeshi military personnel People killed in the Bangladesh Liberation War Recipients of the Bir Sreshtho Mukti Bahini personnel People from Bhola District Bengali military personnel Martyr of Bangladesh Bangladesh Liberation War