“Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians — all those who love this country joined together to liberate it,” he said.
UNB
19 October, 2026, 12:05 am
Last modified: 19 October, 2026, 12:17 am
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman yesterday (18 October) said citizenship, not religion or ethnicity, should be the basis for bringing people together to build the country.
"We did not consider religion or identity when we fought for independence or democracy. In the same way, in the struggle to build the country in the coming days, we will not look at religion. We will look at who is a citizen of this country," he said.
The Prime Minister made the remarks while exchanging greetings with members of the Hindu community during visits to Durga Puja mandaps at Mohakhali and Gulshan-Banani in the capital at night, said his Deputy Press Secretary Hasan Shiplu.
Recalling the 1971 War of Liberation, Tarique Rahman said people of different faiths fought side by side to achieve independence.
"Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians — all those who love this country joined together to liberate it," he said.
The Prime Minister said people also took to the streets at different times after independence to restore democracy and establish their voting and freedom of expression rights, without religious identity becoming a barrier.
Referring to the 2024 mass uprising, he said people from all walks of life, including men and women of different political views and social backgrounds, joined the movement.
"Everyone stood shoulder to shoulder and made the mass uprising successful. We did not look at who belonged to which religion," Tarique Rahman said.
He said the most important identity of all is that they are citizens of Bangladesh, with equal rights in the country.
"You have the same rights over this country as I do. To establish those rights, people of every religion and profession must work shoulder to shoulder to build the country," the Prime Minister said.
He said people of different faiths have lived peacefully in Bangladesh for thousands of years, expressing hope that they will continue to live together in peace for the next thousand years.
Tarique Rahman first visited the Durga Puja mandap at Mohakhali Raksha Kali Temple, where he exchanged greetings with members of the Hindu community.
He later visited the Puja mandap in Banani and exchanged greetings with worshippers and visitors.
Prime Minister's wife Dr Zubaida Rahman and Dhaka North City Corporation Administrator Safiqul Islam Khan were present during the visits.