Bangladesh has decided to confer India’s former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee with the prestigious “Friends of Bangladesh Liberation War Award”. The Award will be hand over to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his upcoming visit to the country from June 6. Bangladesh has chosen Vajpayee for his outstanding support for the country’s independence from Pakistan in 1971 when he was a Lok Sabha member.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also approved a proposal to honour the families of the members of Indian armed forces for sacrificing their lives for the cause of Bangladesh’s independence. It should be noted that Indira Gandhi was the first “foreign friend” conferred with the ‘Bangladesh Liberation War Honour Award’. Sonia Gandhi received the honour on her behalf in 2012 at a special ceremony.

Tidbits

• Operation Jackpot was the codename for several military operations during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
• In the 1971 war, members of the Pakistani military and supporting Bihari and Razaker militias raped between two and four hundred thousand Bangladeshi women.
• It was recognized as one of the major occurrences of war crimes anywhere.
• The Mukti Bahini  refers to Bengali guerrilla and regular armed resistance forces during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.  Its members are known in Bangladesh as Freedom Fighters (FFs).