tarting his landmark two-day visit to Bangladesh on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid homage to the country’s founding father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the martyrs of the 1971 war of liberation.
Minutes after a red carpet welcome at the airport, Mr. Modi tweeted: “Thank you [Bangladeshi] PM Sheikh Hasina for the warm welcome. I look forward to a very good visit that will strengthen ties between India & Bangladesh.”
In another tweet, he said: “Hello Bangladesh. I bring with me the affection and goodwill of the people of India.”
Mr. Modi reached the national memorial at Savar on the outskirts of Dhaka at 11.20 a.m. He placed wreaths in tribute the martyrdom of the freedom fighters during the war against Pakistan.
“Memorial gives impression of rising from the ashes like a phoenix. It symbolises courage & determination of people,” he wrote and signed the visitor’s book and planted a sapling.
Mr. Modi spent half-an-hour at Bangabandhu Memorial Museum. He called Mujibur Rahman an “icon of democracy” and “a great friend of India”.
In a tweet, he called the leader a “towering personality”. “Bangabandhu lived here from 1961 till his assassination on the night of 14-15 August 1975,” he said in the tweet, with a photograph taken inside the house.
Just before leaving New Delhi, he said: “This visit is going to strengthen the bond between our nations, benefiting people of our countries & our region.”
On Sunday morning, Mr. Modi will offer prayers at the Dhakeshwari Temple and the Ramakrishna Mission. He will visit the Indian High Commission’s New Chancery Complex at Baridhara.
He will meet President Mohammed Abdul Hamid and receive the Award of Liberation War Honour on behalf of the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and attend a private lunch hosted by the President. Leader of the Opposition Raushon Ershad will call on him at his suite before he delivers a public speech at 6.30 p.m.
