Bangladesh celebrates 52nd Victory Day; PM Hasina & Prez Shahabuddin pay tributes to martyrs

Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday paid tributes to martyrs on the occasion of Victory Day, which marks the country's liberation from Pakistan in 1971.

Shahabuddin and Hasina paid tributes to the martyrs at the National Memorial at Savar, according to the Dhaka Tribune newspaper.

The 52nd-anniversary celebrations of the 1971 Liberation War, which saw the creation of Bangladesh as a country, were hosted by the president at the Bangabhaban (presidential palace) to celebrate Victory Day, the bdnews24.com news portal reported.

The celebrations kicked off with the national anthem, after which Hasina cut a cake with the president and his wife, Rebecca Sultana.

The chiefs of the three wings of the armed forces, top military and civil officers, and distinguished citizens were also present at the celebrations, which saw performances by renowned artists, according to the report.

India commemorates December 16 as Vijay Diwas. The Border Security Force played a vital role in the Liberation War, which saw a historic victory of the Indian armed forces against Pakistan.

The remarkable victory in the war following the surrender of more than 90,000 Pakistani soldiers on December 16, 1971, resulted in the birth of Bangladesh as an independent country.

According to official records, a total of 125 BSF personnel were killed and 392 injured, while 133 were reported missing after the war.

The about 2.65-lakh-personnel-strong force was raised in 1965, and it is primarily tasked with guarding important Indian fronts with Bangladesh on the east and Pakistan on the country's western flank.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)