Victory Day is celebrated as a special day in Bangladesh all over the country. The day is specially celebrated in Bangladesh on December 16 every year. In a notification issued on 22 January 1972, the day was celebrated as the National Day of Bangladesh and declared an official holiday. After nine months of liberation war, on December 16, 1971, about 91,634 members of the Pakistani army formally surrendered at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka. As a result, Bangladesh emerged as an independent and sovereign state.
On this occasion, the day is celebrated every year in Bangladesh with due solemnity and great enthusiasm. The day started with a 31-gun salute in the early hours of December 16. Members of the Army, Navy and Air Force participated in the combined military parade at National Parade Square. As part of the parade, the country’s president or prime minister took the salute. A large number of people gather to watch this parade.
People from all walks of life, including the president, prime minister, opposition party leaders and activists, various social and cultural organizations, offer wreaths at the National Memorial located at Savar in Dhaka as part of paying tribute to those who died in the Bangladesh War of Independence.
Pakistani forces were forced to surrender to the coalition forces on this day in 1971 after nine months of bloody fighting. On that day, General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi signed the surrender document on behalf of Pakistan at the Race Course Maidan in the center of Dhaka. He surrendered to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Jagjit Singh Arora. Bangladesh Liberation Army Vice Commander and Deputy Chief of Staff Group Captain Abdul Karim Khondkar was present at this surrender ceremony. However, General Osmani, the commander-in-chief of the liberation war, was not present.
The surrender of the Pakistan Army ended the nine-month long war of independence and created an independent state called Bangladesh (later used as a term).
Since 1972, Victory Day has been celebrated nationally in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh War of Independence is an important event for the nation. Films, poems, articles, mass media etc. have highlighted this issue in various ways. On the occasion of this day, the Bangladesh Army organizes a Victory Day parade at the National Parade Square. Besides, Victory Day parade, special discussion program, exchange meeting, cultural program are also organized in every upazila of the country. The main roads of the country are national flags arranged with On this day special honors are shown at Savar National Memorial in Dhaka.