Rashed Prodhan, co-chair of Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (Jagpa), said on Tuesday that the independence Bangladesh gained in 1971 has largely been nominal.
“We never truly experienced sovereignty. In building the Bangladesh of the future, we want to taste real independence and sovereignty and create a new Bangladesh free from India's tax dominance,” he said while speaking to journalists after paying tribute at the National Martyrs’ Memorial in Savar at around 8:30am on Tuesday.
He added: “1971 is clear to us, the Liberation War is clear, and Martyred Intellectuals Day is clear. Our map and flag are clear. I don’t see any reason to create new debates about these. We must embrace 1971. Similarly, we must acknowledge the fall of the autocracies in 1990 and 1975. Building a new Bangladesh is not possible by discarding our old history. Therefore, I don’t see room for unnecessary controversy.”
Rashed Prodhan further said: “Those who are trying to create controversy must be corrected. Today’s Victory Day feels different—it feels less like a celebration of victory and more like election politics. The motive behind these controversies may be electoral. But in the Bangladesh of the future, such disputes will not hold.”
Leaders and activists of various levels of the party were present with him during the visit.