Bangladesh delegation likely to attend Vijay Diwas celebrations in Kolkata

Army personnel during a rehearsal ahead of Vijay Diwas 2024 celebrations, in Kolkata, Wednesday, December 11, 2024
| Photo Credit: PTI

Sources at the Indian Army said on Thursday (December 12, 2024), that a delegation from Bangladesh is likely to attend Vijay Diwas celebrations at the Eastern Command headquarters in Kolkata on December 16.

Vijay Diwas marks India’s historic victory over Pakistani forces in the 1971 war and the consequent formation of Bangladesh from erstwhile East Pakistan. It is commemorated on December 16 every year.

According to defence sources, the Bangladeshi delegation might also include muktijoddhas (Bangladeshi freedom fighters) who were part of erstwhile East Pakistan’s freedom struggle in 1971. 

This news follows high-level talks between Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Chief Advisor of Bangladesh Muhammad Yunus, Bangladeshi Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossein, and Foreign Secretary Mohammad Jashim Uddin at Dhaka on Monday (December 9, 2024).

Notably, Mr. Misri’s visit to Dhaka came two weeks after the Dhaka Metropolitan Police had arrested Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das in a sedition case, which led to sociopolitical turmoil on both sides of the Bengal border. It was also the first visit to Bangladesh by a high-ranking Indian official since Sheikh Hasina stepped down as the Bangladesh Prime Minister in August this year after widespread anti-government protests across the neighbouring country. 

According to defence sources, Vijay Diwas celebrations this year are set to include a wreath-laying ceremony, military tattoo, and interactions with 1971 war veterans at the Eastern Command Headquarters at Fort William in Kolkata. 

In 2023, a delegation of senior officers of the Bangladesh Armed Forces including a group of muktijoddhas visited the Eastern Command Headquarters in Kolkata to partake in the Indian Army’s Vijay Diwas celebrations.