India, Oct. 20 -- Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Tuesday said that religion is a personal matter, but the country belongs to everyone, as he vowed to ensure equal dignity and rights for every citizen of Bangladesh.

Rahman, who became prime minister earlier this year after his Bangladesh Nationalist Party secured a decisive victory in the general elections after a 20-year gap, also hoped that religion would not create any barriers between people.

"This country belongs to all of us. From today, let us pledge to work together to build Bangladesh we aspire to, regardless of whether we are Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists or Christians. Let this be our aspiration today," Rahman was quoted as saying by the state-run BSS news agency.

Speaking at ...