Dhaka: The democratic spirit that was the driving force behind Bangladesh’s War of Independence does not exist today, says Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.

‘It’s unfortunate but true, [that] democratic spirit is absent [in Bangladesh] today,’ the BNP leader told the journalists on Wednesday in Dhaka after paying the party’s tribute to its founder Ziaur Rahman marking the 45^th Victory Day of Bangladesh.

Fakhrul said they would reinstate the hard-earned democracy through movement.

Later BNP and its affiliated bodies brought a victory procession from Naya Paltan. The party was barred from holding victory procession last two years, but this year Dhaka Metropolitan Police allowed them to bring a procession starting from Naya Paltan to Mouchak.