Time to declare a Republic Day in Bangladesh
Acting President Syed Nazrul Islam speaking at the oath-taking ceremony of Mujibnagar Government on April 17, 1971. Photo: Archives
Many countries of the world have their Republic Days . Some of these are unique in the sense that they are neither the Independence Day nor the Constitution Day. Some countries observe the day on their Independence Day while some on the day of the first functioning of the newly formed constitution of their state. The Republic Days observed in Italy (June 2, 1946), Iraq (July 14, 1958), the Islamic Republic of Iran (April 1, 1979), and Nepal (May 28, 2008) mark occasions when the concerned republic was first established as a sovereign state (Italy), left monarchism (Iraq), developed as an Islamic Republic (Iran) or reformed as a truly democratic state (Nepal). Countries like India and Pakistan observe their Republic Day on the day of the coming-into-effect of their first constitutions.