DHAKA: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday recalled his participation in the Jana Sangh campaign backing the rebels in former East Pakistan as he accepted a ‘liberation war’ honour on behalf of former premier Atal Bihari Vajpayee, reported the media.
Admitting that there had been a conspiracy to divide Pakistan, he said the establishment of Bangladesh was a desire of every Indian and that’s why India’s forces fought along with the Mukti Bahini, thus creating a new country.
Modi said he was one of the young volunteers who came to Delhi in 1971 to participate in the Satyagraha Movement launched by Jana Sangh as a volunteer to garner support for the Mukti Bahini members.
Speaking at the ceremony to receive the award ‘Bangladesh Liberation War Honour’ from President Abdul Hamid and in messages at a social networking website, Modi recalled Vajpayee’s speech in parliament on December 6, 1971, in which he asked the government to recognise Bangladesh as a nation.
The citation of the award hailed Vajpayee as a “highly respected political leader” and recognised his “active role”.He praised his Bangladeshi counterpart Hasina Wajid for the crackdown against ‘terrorists’ and said India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh had decided to promote trade relations.