DUSHANBE, August 16, 2012, Asia-Plus  -- Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has congratulated the President of India Pranab Mukherjee on the Independent Day of India, the Tajik president’s official website reports.

In his message of congratulations, Emomali Rahmon, in particular, noted that Tajikistan and India had century-old ties in various spheres of life and that experience would be useful for further expansion of cooperation between the two countries.

Rahmon also expressed confidence that expansion of mutually beneficial cooperation would serve national interest of Tajikistan and India and the region as well.

The Independence Day of India, celebrated on August 15, is a holiday commemorating India''s independence from the British rule and its birth as a sovereign nation on August 15, 1947.  India achieved independence following the Indian independence movement noted for largely peaceful nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience led by the Indian National Congress.  The independence coincided with the partition of India wherein the British Indian Empire was divided along religious lines into two new states—Dominion of India (later Republic of India) and Dominion of Pakistan (later Islamic Republic of Pakistan).

The Independence Day is a national holiday in India. The flagship event takes place in Delhi where the Prime Minister hoists the national flag at the Red Fort, followed by a nationally broadcast speech from its ramparts. The day is observed all over India with flag-hoisting ceremonies, parades and cultural events.