New Delhi, March 26, 2026
Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman chose the country’s National Day for his official car to mark the first time to bear the national flag since he assumed office as head of the government, according to reports from Dhaka.
The image, while on way to pay homage to the Liberation War martyrs at the National Memorial in Savar on Thursday morning, should serve as a lesson for those who had declared a subtle intent to rewrite the country’s history and legacy.
Rahman also went to the National Parade Ground in Dhaka “in his flag-bearing official car to join the Independence and National Day Parade 2026”, marking the 56th Independence and National Day, The Daily Star reported, quoting the Prime Minister’s Office.
Incidentally, Bangladesh National Day marks the moment when the country’s founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared the independence of East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, on the morning of March 26, 1971.
The declaration followed the Pakistan Army launching ‘Operation Searchlight’ the day before, a violent campaign that targeted the region’s Bengali-speaking civilians, students, and military personnel, resulting in widespread atrocities.
The operation was presented by West Pakistani authorities as a security measure to restore order after the 1970 election and rising Bengali nationalist activity.
The mandate saw Awami League, led by Mujibur Rahman, emerge as the primary political force representing the-then East Pakistan.
Thus, the day symbolises struggle for sovereignty and the sacrifices made during the Bangladesh Liberation War.
It marked the opening phase of a campaign that precipitated the nine‑month Liberation War and is widely remembered in Bangladesh as the start of the 1971 genocide.
The crackdown occurred amid Cold War geopolitics that complicated international responses; major powers were divided in their reactions, and early global action to stop the violence was limited.
The operation triggered armed resistance in East Pakistan and ultimately led to full‑scale war and Pakistan’s surrender in December 1971.
Operation Searchlight involved coordinated strikes across Dhaka and other urban centres, where Pakistan Army used tanks, mortars, and small arms to assault dormitories, police and paramilitary barracks, the Dhaka University, and Hindu‑majority areas.
The detention of Awami League leader Mujibur Rahman was part of the same campaign.
Meanwhile, in June last year, the interim government in Bangladesh led by Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus, declared August 5 as “Uprising Day” and August 8 as “New Bangladesh Day”.
Additionally, July 16 was declared as Martyr Abu Sayeed Day, in remembrance of the student, who was killed in police firing in Rangpur during the mass movement.
August 8 marks the day when the previous Yunus-led interim government was formed following the overthrow of the Shiekh Hasina-led government amid a mass uprising by students and the public.
Incidentally, the Cabinet decision came a year after the fall of the Hasina government.
Thereafter, a political row erupted over the government’s declaration of August 8 as “New Bangladesh Day”, with some political parties and civic organisations demanding the date be changed to August 5.
These included the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), among others.
Meanwhile, the Inqilab Manch, a platform of July uprising participants, threatening wider, more aggressive demonstrations across Bangladesh.
The move was perceived as attempts to shift the symbolic weight of March 26, 1971, declaration of independence from Pakistan toward newer dates tied to recent political upheavals.
The visuals of defacing and destruction of statues, photographs, buildings, and anything connected to Mujibur Rahman or his legacy was still fresh in memory.
It was also the time when Dhaka, under the Yunus-led interim government, initiated closer ties with Islamabad, beginning direct flights, hosting Army Generals, even as reports warned of renewed terror threats from such elements gaining easy access to Bangladesh.
However, Thursday’s reports suggest that realpolitik and pragmatism scored over emotive outburst and revengeful intents that would have ultimately hurt the nation itself.(Agency)
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