Pakistan Definitive Overprinted 'BANGLA DESH' in English

Bangladesh · 1971 · 10 Paisa

This provisional stamp features a 1965 definitive from Pakistan, originally depicting the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, overprinted in black ink with 'BANGLA DESH'. These overprints were applied to existing Pakistani stamps to create the first postage for the newly independent nation. The overprint signifies the transition of postal authority during a pivotal moment in the country's history.

Issued in late 1971, these overprinted stamps were a practical necessity following the Bangladesh Liberation War, allowing the new government to establish postal services before new national stamps could be designed and printed.