[4][5] On 15 August 1975, the first president of independent Bangladesh and the "father of the nation" who was also called "Bangabandhu"(meaning friend of Bangla) Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was killed by a group of army personnel, along with his family at his house in Dhanmondi in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka.

[7] Sociologist Hasanuzzaman Chowdhury wrote that Khaleda Zia, leader of the BNP and former prime minister, shifted the observance of her birthday to 15 August to defy the AL and mock the commemoration.

[13] The government had made it obligatory for schools and other public institutions to observe the holiday, and granted universities funds to organize events on the day.

[7] Government officials and Awami League supporters commemorated the day by laying wreaths, making speeches, and attending special prayers.

Anthropologist Mascha Schultz has described a striking absence of the general public, those not involved in politics or compelled to attend, from commemoration events.