After the Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975 , following several coups and counter coups , Ziaur Rahman assumed power in 1976 and declared himself the President of Bangladesh . In an attempt to create a territorial identity in contrast to the ethnolinguistic identity of Bengali nationalism , Ziaur Rahman began to promote the idea of Bangladeshi nationalism . In an interview , Ziaur Rahman tried to give a comprehensive definition of this ideology , '' Bangladeshi nationalism means , we are Bangladeshis . We have a different history . Our country has been through a different process . Our traditions and culture are different . Our language is different , we are moulding it in our own way — we are modernizing it . We have different prose and poetry ; we have different arts and thoughts . Our geographical position is different , our rivers and soils are different . Our people are different . We are completely free and sovereign … And today , a consciousness has grown among our people , which is different from that of the people of our neighboring country and other countries of the region . '' From this time , citizens of Bangladesh came to be known as Bangladeshis instead of Bengali . According to scholars , Zia 's main aim to foster this new thought was to distant the country from neighbouring India which had developed extensive ties with the Sheikh Mujib government . Proponents of Bangladeshi nationalism argue that this ideology has an edge over the previous Bengali nationalism because of its territorial appeal which succeeds to include the indigenous peoples of Bangladesh as well as distinguishes the people of Bangladesh from the Bengali people of India . According to Muhammad Ghulam Kabir , " Zia was motivated by the desire to unify the country and to further assert Bangladesh 's sovereignty . " While replacing Bengali nationalism with Bangladeshi nationalism as one of the fundamental principles , Ziaur Rahman also removed the principle of secularism , which was also one of the main features of Bengali nationalism and inserted the line " absolute trust and faith on Almighty Allah " . Scholars argue that it was a political strategy of Rahman to win the confidence and support of the right wing political parties of Bangladesh . Rahman also intended to strengthen the relations of the country with other Muslim states , especially from the Middle East . The act also helped the country to be differentiated from neighbouring India , a Hindu majority state
Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Bangladeshi nationalism