Conspirators against Bangladesh have themselves failed, says Hasina

The people who conspired to foil Bangladesh’s independence have themselves failed now, Sheikh Hasina says.

“We will uphold the dignity of Bangladesh as an independent nation and take the country forward,” the prime minister said at a discussion organised by the Awami League at its headquarters in Dhaka to mark Bangabandhu’s Homecoming Day on Sunday.

Joining the event via video call from the Ganabhaban, the Awami League president said, “We will build a prosperous, developed Bangladesh free from hunger, poverty, militancy

and terrorism with the non-communal spirit. Let’s vow on the Homecoming Day of the Father of the Nation that we will always keep our heads high in the world.”     

The Pakistani occupation army arrested Bangabandhu at his Dhanmondi residence on road number 32 early on Mar 26, 1971 immediately after he proclaimed the independence of Bangladesh through a message.

The Pakistani army launched a brutal crackdown in Dhaka that night. The nation was ultimately delivered from the Pakistani occupation following the war inspired by his brave leadership, even as Bangabandhu remained detained in a Pakistani prison.

On Jan 10, 1972, Bangabandhu returned to the country via London and New Delhi after his release by Pakistan following the emergence of Bangladesh as a free nation with the humiliating defeat of the Pakistani military.

His daughter Hasina recalled how Bangabandhu fought for the rights of the destitute throughout his entire life. “He loved the nation. Our only goal is to work for the welfare of the people for whom he sacrificed his life,” she said. Bangabandhu was assassinated with most members of the family on Aug 15, 1975.

Heading a government for a record third straight term, she said the government has taken up the Vision 2021, Vision 2041 and Delta Plan 2100 keeping in mind that the next generation will celebrate the centenary of independence on 2071.

“We must implement these and take the country forward,” she said.