Tarique Rahman’s “one identity: Bangladeshi” remark in ‘Adivasi’ debate draws online praise
STAFF REPORTER
BNP Chairperson Tarique Rahman’s remarks — “We all have only one identity: we are Bangladeshis” — made amid the ongoing debate over recognising people as “Adivasi”, have sparked discussion and praise on social media.
A video of his brief Q&A segment on the hill tracts issue, delivered at an exchange meeting on January 25 at a hotel in Chattogram city, has gone viral online.
Rahman also shared the clip on his verified Facebook page under the title, “There will be no discrimination between the hills and the plains. We all have only one identity: we are Bangladeshis.”
In the comments section, many users described the remarks as timely. Some wrote that there is no division between the plains and the hills, and that everyone is equal — “everyone is Bangladeshi,” they said.
The exchange meeting, titled “The Plan: Youth Policy Talk with Tarique Rahman,” was held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Chattogram.
Parmita Chakma, a student of Chittagong University, asked Rahman about the party’s role regarding constitutional recognition as “Adivasi”, land rights, and the long-running tensions and concerns in the Chittagong Hill Tracts over land, citizen security, and state participation of hill communities.
She also asked how the BNP would support hill youth in education, healthcare and government jobs, and in skill development.
In reply, Rahman said, “When the war took place in 1971 to make the country independent, no one looked at who followed which religion. No one looked at who was from the plains and who was from the hills either.”
“In the same way, when the movement took place in 2024, at that time too no one looked at who followed which religion. No one looked at who was from the plains and who was from the hills,” he said.
“Therefore, whatever facilities a young person from the plains of Bangladesh will receive, a young person from the hills will receive the same facilities. You will proceed based on your merit,” he added.
Referring to the 2024 movement, he said it began with the abolition of the quota system, and that he had proposed keeping a 5 per cent quota at different levels for some people with special needs, while ensuring the rest is based on merit — “whether from the plains or from the hills.”
Rahman reiterated that young people from the hills would receive the same opportunities as those from the plains, based on qualification and merit.
Around 450 students from about 50 colleges and universities in and around Chattogram city took part in the dialogue, where he answered questions from students.
