Abu Taher

Mohammad Abu Taher (Bengali: মোহাম্মদ আবু তাহের; 14 November 1938 – 21 July 1976) was a Bangladeshi military officer. He first served in the Pakistan Army before defecting to the Bangladesh Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War. He later crossed into India and reported to the Indian authorities. After a week of screening at Dehradun, he was sent to Kolkata, West Bengal. He was ordered to report to Sector 11 of Mukti Bahini under the command of Major Ziaur Rahman. He became the sector commander after Major Ziaur Rahman and served in the Bangladesh Defence Forces (BDF) for about two months, until November 1971. He was awarded the Bir Uttom Medal for gallantry in the War of Liberation. He was released from military service by an Indian military medical board in Pune, India, after his leg was amputated. After independence, he was inducted into the Bangladesh Army for administrative retirement with the legacy rank of lieutenant colonel.

After settling in with his family, the government of Bangladesh appointed him to Comilla. Later, Taher became a political activist and leader of the left-wing Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal. He was responsible for the 7 November coup which was the third coup in 1975 in Bangladesh. After freeing Ziaur Rahman and reinstating him as army chief, many personnel, including Taher, were executed after being found guilty of high treason and murder. However, in 2011, his trial was declared illegal by the High Court of Bangladesh.