Dhaka, March 8 -- More than anyone else in Bangladesh's history, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman enjoyed a relationship with his people. That special relationship reached its zenith at the Racecourse Maidan on March 7, 1971.

That year 1971, as we all know by now, threw up a number of dates that will remain forever etched in the history of Bangladesh, and command its people's reverence. Particularly, March 26 and December 16, commemorated respectively as the dates of Independence and Victory, stand out in the popular consciousness, constitutionally enshrined as indelible landmarks in the emergence of Bangladesh. They are marked on every calendar and appear on the 'important dates' column of every diary, not to mention the annual holiday...