Speaking as the chief guest, Awami League presidium member Suranjit Sengupta said the freedom fighters are the North Star. They fought in the Liberation War with a view to building a country free from poverty, exploitation, fundamentalism and communalism, he said.

The war heroes are now being neglected, but the nation will one day remember and commemorate them with the highest respect, he added.

Chairman of Bangladesh Muktijoddha Sangsad Principal Abdul Ahad Chowdhury, Sultan Uddin, Abu Hossain and Harun-or Rashid also spoke at the programme held at the Diploma Engineers' Institution auditorium.