BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman said the BNP government is working relentlessly to establish Bangladesh as a welfare-oriented, democratic and self-reliant state. In a message issued Monday ahead of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s 48th founding anniversary on Tuesday, he said party leaders, workers, supporters and well-wishers would continue serving the country while preserving public trust and confidence.

Rahman said BNP was founded in 1978 by former president Ziaur Rahman at Ramna in Dhaka, describing its establishment as a landmark in restoring democracy. He paid tribute to Ziaur Rahman and former prime minister and BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, saying Khaleda Zia’s leadership helped take the party into households across Bangladesh.

He said BNP had worked with the public to protect independence, sovereignty, democracy and good governance, while remembering party members who were killed or injured in such struggles. Rahman also said BNP had received mandates whenever voters could cast ballots freely, and cited the restoration of parliamentary democracy and expansion of women’s education among initiatives taken during BNP governments.