A photograph taken at the closing ceremony of “Notun Kuri Sports 2025-26,” held at the Army Stadium in the capital on 27 July, spread across social media within moments. Amid a crowd of thousands of children, the two hands a boy in school uniform stretched out towards the prime minister, Tarique Rahman, and the pure smile across his face touched the hearts of countless people.
The boy’s name is Tahsin Abdullah. But behind the bright smile in the photograph lay a story of deep grief.
Tahsin and his father, Nazmul Haque, paid a courtesy call on the prime minister, Tarique Rahman, at the prime minister’s office at the Secretariat on Wednesday. The prime minister asked after the boy, listened to him talk about his dreams and offered encouragement and good wishes for the future.
In the tragic crash of a fighter jet at Milestone School in Uttara in July 2025, Tahsin lost the person dearest to him — his elder sister Tasnia. Although they studied at the same school, they were in two different buildings that day. Tahsin was then a sixth-grade student and Tasnia was in the eighth grade. The fighter jet came down on Tasnia’s building.
Hearing the sound of the huge explosion, young Tahsin ran to look for his elder sister. He had heard from someone that saline and water were needed for the injured. So he stood waiting for his sister with a bottle of saline and water in his two small hands. But that wait never ended.
According to the family, Tahsin changed after the accident. At a healing session he wrote on a piece of paper: “My pain is very great. I have lost my dear sister. She has died. I miss her very, very much. She was my best friend.”
After losing his sister, the open smile of before was no longer seen on Tahsin’s face.
But at the Bangladesh Army Stadium event on 27 July a different Tahsin seemed to appear. As the prime minister, Tarique Rahman, was walking around the field, the boy grew delighted as he came near. That pure smile and delight was caught on camera. The picture later spread across social media and countless people recognised their own feelings in Tahsin’s smile.
The prime minister, Tarique Rahman, later learned that behind the smiling face in the photograph lay a heartbreaking family history. On learning of it he instructed his additional press secretary, Atikur Rahman Rumon, to find out about Tahsin and his family.
Following from that, Tahsin came with his father, Nazmul Haque, to pay a courtesy call on the prime minister. He is now in the seventh grade. The family has another younger daughter, who is in nursery.
At the meeting the prime minister asked about Tahsin’s studies and what he wanted to be when he grew up. Tahsin said he wanted to be a successful businessman when he grew up. He also wanted to do something through which people would benefit and to which people would be drawn.
The prime minister praised Tahsin’s dream. He advised the boy to study attentively, play sport regularly and work with dedication to realise his dream.
In conversation Tahsin said his favourite game was football.
At the end of the meeting the prime minister handed Tahsin a basketball signed by himself and a drone set as gifts.
After the meeting a delighted Tahsin said he was very happy to have met the prime minister again. He had never imagined he would get such an opportunity, and the whole thing was a complete surprise to him. He said he was waiting eagerly to go to school and tell his friends the story of meeting the prime minister.
Tahsin also said the prime minister had spoken to him exactly like a member of his family, so he had not felt nervous at all. He looked round the rooms of the prime minister’s office as well, and said the replicas of cars and ships kept there had fascinated him. He also took a selfie with the prime minister using his father’s mobile phone.
The prime minister, Tarique Rahman, expressed his deep condolences and sympathy to Tahsin’s father, who lost a child in the Milestone jet crash.
Those present at the meeting included the prime minister’s additional press secretary, Atikur Rahman Rumon; the prime minister’s private secretary-2, Md Mehedul Islam; the prime minister’s assistant private secretary-2, Abdur Rahman Sani; an associate professor (orthopaedics) working at the prime minister’s office, Dr Shah Muhammad Aman Ullah; the prime minister’s deputy press secretary-1, Zahidul Islam Roni; and the member secretary of “Amra BNP Poribar,” Mokchhedul Momin Mithun.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report