News Desk : dhakamirror.com
Bangladesh celebrated the 54th Victory Day on Monday amid festivity, remembering the heroic freedom fighters’ supreme sacrifices to free the country from the marauding Pakistani military in the War of Independence.
The government, political parties, Bangladesh missions abroad, socio-cultural organisations, educational institutions, professional bodies, and other organisations celebrated the day with various events across the country.
This year, Victory Day was celebrated with a call to build a new Bangladesh with renewed vigour and zeal as mass people led by undaunted students brought the downfall of the Awami League regime on August 5.
There was no news of the Awami League organising any open programme to celebrate the day.
No major untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the country.
The Victory Day programmes undertaken at the state level included a 31-gun salute and the hoisting of the national flag atop all government and semi-government and private offices as well as offices of autonomous bodies across the country.
Receptions were hosted for the freedom fighters and family members of martyrs at the city, district, and upazila levels.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin and chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus paid homage to the martyrs of the Liberation War by placing wreaths at the National Memorial at Savar in the morning.
The President laid the wreath at the altar of the National Memorial with the rise of the sun at 6:34 am, followed by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus and and President of Timor-Leste Jose Ramos-Horta.
A contingent drawn from the Bangladesh Army, Navy, and Air Force presented the state salute on the occasion.
Injured freedom fighters and their family members, advisers to the interim government, foreign diplomats, invited guests, and high-ranking civil and military officials were present on the occasion.
After the president and the chief adviser left the National Memorial premises, people of all strata were allowed to pay their tributes to the 1971 martyrs by placing wreaths.
Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed and Supreme Court judges, diplomats, politicians, artistes, intellectuals, valiant freedom fighters, professionals as well as cross section of people paid glowing tributes to martyrs.
Clad in green and red dresses including sharee and panjabee, people in massive number irrespective of gender and age thronged the national memorial to place wreaths since the dawn and the stream of people continued till afternoon.
Wounded freedom fighters, offspring of martyrs’ families, political parties, including Bangladesh Nationalist Party also placed wreaths.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin and first lady Rebeka Sultana hosted a reception programme at Bangabhaban marking the Victory Day in the afternoon where President of East Timor José Ramos-Horta.
Marking the day, BNP hoisted the national and party flags at all party offices in the early hours on Monday, paid homage at the National Memorial in Savar and laid wreaths at the grave of BNP founder and former president Ziaur Rahman at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka.
‘Bangladesh First’, a BNP affiliate, organised a ‘public concert’ at Manik Mia Avenue about 2:00pm on the day.
National dailies brought out special supplements on the occasion. State-owned and private television channels and radios are broadcasting month- long special programmes highlighting the significance of the Liberation War.
All children’s parks and museums across the country were opened to the public free of charge, while Liberation War-based films were screened at cinemas without entry fees.
On the night of March 25, 1971, the Pakistani occupation forces launched an onslaught on the Bengalis, committing genocide on the unsuspecting and unarmed people.
The War of Independence was preceded by 23 years of intense political struggle for democracy and national identity.
The commander of the 92,000 marauding troops of the Pakistan military, Lieutenant General AAK Niazi, surrendered at the Ramna Race Course, now Suhrawardy Udyan, in Dhaka on December 16, 1971.
– Input from New Age was used in this article.
