[🇧🇩] Independence Day

[Saif]

President takes salute, PM witnesses parade at National Parade Square

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday witnessed the Independence and National Day Parade while President Mohammed Shahabuddin took the salute and inspected the parade as the chief guest. The parade was held at the National Parade Ground here, marking the 56th Independence and National Day...

en.prothomalo.com

President takes salute, PM witnesses parade at National Parade Square

BSS
Dhaka
Published: 26 Mar 2026, 16: 28

Armed forces personnel salutes President Mohammed Shahabuddin during the Parade marking the 56th Independence and National Day at National Parade Square, Agargaon, Dhaka on 26 March 2026 PMO

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday witnessed the Independence and National Day Parade while President Mohammed Shahabuddin took the salute and inspected the parade as the chief guest.

The parade was held at the National Parade Ground here, marking the 56th Independence and National Day.

President Mohammed Shahabuddin, accompanied by Major General SM Asadul Haque, the parade commander and also General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 9th Infantry Division and Area Commander of Savar Area, riding an open jeep inspected the parade and took the salute.

President Mohammed Shahabuddin takes the salute of armed forces personnel during the Parade marking the 56th Independence and National Day at National Parade Square, Agargaon, Dhaka on 26 March 2026 PMO

Muktijuddha Sangsad, Bangladesh Army, Navy, Air Force, Police, Coast Guard, Ansar and VDP, paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Bangladesh National Cadet Corps (BNCC), Bangladesh Jail and combined female contingents participated in the parade.

President Mohammed Shahabuddin and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman also witnessed the attractive flag-bearing skydive, armoury acquisitions of different regiments and contingents of the armed forces, spectacular fly-past and aerobatic display.

Prime Minister’s daughter Barrister Zaima Rahman also witnessed the parade and the displays.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and his daughter Zaima Rahman watches the Parade marking the 56th Independence and National Day at National Parade Square, Agargaon, Dhaka on 26 March 2026 PMO

Before departing from the ground, the President and the Prime Minister exchanged pleasantries with the commanders of the contingents who took part in the parade.

Earlier, on his arrival at the parade ground at 9.57 am, the Prime Minister was escorted by a ceremonial motorcade of military police, while advancing towards the saluting dais.

Flypast during the Parade marking the 56th Independence and National Day at National Parade Square, Agargaon, Dhaka on 26 March 2026 Dipu Malakar

Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan, State Minister Ishraque Hossain, Prime Minister’s Defence Adviser Brigadier General (retd) AKM Shamsul Islam, chiefs of the three services, principal staff officer of the Armed Forces Division and liberation war affairs secretary received the Prime Minister.

Then the premier, along with other officials, received the President on the parade ground.

Every year, 26 March brings the most tragic reminiscence of history’s blackest episode that heralded a nine-month bloody ordeal from the night of 25 March 1971, achieving the long-cherished independence on 16 December the same year at the cost of a sea of blood.​

 

[Saif]

Imperative of reviving the spirit and power of the Liberation War

The establishment of Pakistan as a nation state owed much to the people of East Bengal. Yet, from the very outset, the ruling elite of Pakistan subjected these same people to neglect, suspicion, humiliation, exploitation and deprivation. Alongside stark economic disparities, there was the...

en.prothomalo.com

Imperative of reviving the spirit and power of the Liberation War

Anu Muhammad
Published: 26 Mar 2026, 13: 51

The establishment of Pakistan as a nation state owed much to the people of East Bengal. Yet, from the very outset, the ruling elite of Pakistan subjected these same people to neglect, suspicion, humiliation, exploitation and deprivation.

Alongside stark economic disparities, there was the relentless oppression of military authoritarian rule, deep-seated anti-Bengali prejudice, and persistent suspicion and slander regarding the religious identity of Bengali Muslims.

Bengalis were systematically marginalised in administration, commerce, and both civilian and military state institutions. Efforts were even made to alienate them from their own language and literature by branding them as “Hinduani” (Hindu-influenced).

Sociologist Hamza Alavi aptly characterised Pakistan as an overdeveloped military-bureaucratic state. This heavy apparatus of civil and military bureaucracy was further reinforced by Pakistan’s alignment with the United States’ imperial strategy in the post–Second World War global order.

Due to this, Pakistan was included in the SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organization) and CENTO (Central Treaty Organization) military alliances in 1954 and 1955, respectively. In addition, the Regional Development Cooperation (RDC) was formed with US-aligned states such as Turkey and Iran. Pakistan thus became a pillar of US imperial interests. Concurrently, economic inequality deepened, culminating in the rise of the notorious “22 families”.

This situation provoked popular resistance. Democratic movements expanded across both wings of Pakistan. Under mounting pressure, a military ruler fell in 1969, and another was compelled to hold elections. In 1970, some 23 years after its founding, Pakistan held its first general election, creating the possibility of framing a constitution through an elected National Assembly.

Recalling the insights of Frantz Fanon, one may argue that while national consciousness is vital in struggles against colonial or occupying powers, it becomes hollow if it does not evolve into a transformative social consciousness.

However, the Awami League’s landslide victory unsettled the ruling establishment. The 22 families, the military-bureaucratic elite, and the US-aligned Pakistani ruling class were unwilling to accept any meaningful change.

The first session of the elected National Assembly was scheduled for 3 March 1971. When President Yahya Khan postponed the parliament session on 1 March, it became evident that democratic transformation within Pakistan was impossible. The death knell of the state had begun to sound.

At this moment, Awami League president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, as leader of the majority party, emerged as the central political figure. Other leaders and parties rallied behind him, including Maulana Bhashani, Mani Singh, and Siraj Sikder, the latter even calling for the formation of an all-party committee to lead the independence struggle.

Anu Muhammad File photo

Although Sheikh Mujib kept the door open for dialogue, the military junta effectively sealed Pakistan’s fate by launching a brutal genocide on the night of 25 March 1971. This ruthless assault made it clear that liberation could only be achieved through war.

Two narratives surrounding the Liberation War remain problematic. The first equates the Liberation War solely with the Awami League, using it as a shield to legitimise all actions by the party. The second dismisses the war as a conspiracy, claiming that Bangladesh’s independence merely served Indian interests. Both narratives undermine the extraordinary courage, unity and sacrifice of the people.

Even after the fall of an autocratic regime through the 2024 mass uprising, the balance of social and political power, combined with the backing of the interim government, has enabled pro-imperialist forces, religious fascists and the far right to gain further ground. Bangladesh has been drawn into a range of potentially harmful agreements, including those involving the United States.

It is true that India had its own geopolitical considerations, and that the Awami League leadership faced internal tensions and limitations. Yet, despite these constraints, the scale of people’s resistance, their courage, unity, and willingness to sacrifice everything in the face of a barbaric occupying army, cannot be diminished.

However, the immense expectations of independence quickly began to erode. Differences emerged even between the two central figures of the time, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Tajuddin Ahmad, over issues such as the trial of war criminals, dependence on the United States and the World Bank, and the establishment of BAKSAL.

Tajuddin was deeply dissatisfied with the declaration of general amnesty, widespread corruption, nepotism, and the eventual shift to one-party rule. At one point, he reportedly told Sheikh Mujib, “Was this what we struggled for over 24 years? At this rate, neither you nor I will survive, and the country will fall into the hands of Razakars and Al Badrs (local collaborators of the Pakistan army).” (Tajuddin Ahmad: Neta O Pita by Sharmin Ahmad).

Over the past five decades, Bangladesh has witnessed the killings of two presidents, two periods of direct military rule, and 16 constitutional amendments. Governance has gradually become more authoritarian. Mass uprisings in 1990 and 2024 toppled two autocratic regimes, and a newly elected government assumed office in early 2026.

During this time, the economy expanded significantly, with growth in GDP, trade and infrastructure, alongside changes in income patterns and professions. At the same time, wealth concentration and inequality have also intensified, with a handful of groups exercising political and economic dominance reminiscent of Pakistan’s “22 families”.

Recalling the insights of Frantz Fanon, one may argue that while national consciousness is vital in struggles against colonial or occupying powers, it becomes hollow if it does not evolve into a transformative social consciousness. In Bangladesh, we have seen how a nation state born from resistance to national oppression has, in turn, perpetuated oppression against others. Efforts to challenge economic concentration have instead produced even more powerful oligarchic groups. Resistance to imperialism and militarisation has not prevented their restructuring in new forms. A series of agreements contrary to national interests has been signed.

Even after the fall of an autocratic regime through the 2024 mass uprising, the balance of social and political power, combined with the backing of the interim government, has enabled pro-imperialist forces, religious fascists and the far right to gain further ground. Bangladesh has been drawn into a range of potentially harmful agreements, including those involving the United States.

In 1971, we witnessed a people’s war—a grand national awakening. With the exception of a small number of collaborators, the people as a whole demonstrated extraordinary power of resistance and spark of creativity. That legacy continues to inspire ongoing struggles for freedom.

For this reason, the imperative today is to revive and develop the unvanquished power and spirit of the Liberation War, by strengthening efforts to establish people’s control over national resources and policy, and by intensifying struggles against imperialism, foreign domination, and class, gender, ethnic and religious inequality and oppression.​

 

[Saif]

Operation Searchlight on March 25, 1971: The night hell opened over Dhaka | 25th March Kal Ratri 1971 | The Daily Star

Explore the night of March 25, 1971, when Operation Searchlight unleashed a brutal Pakistan army crackdown across Dhaka, igniting the Bangladesh Liberation War.

operationsearchlight.thedailystar.net

Operation Searchlight: The night hell opened over Dhaka