Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Friday confirmed that its acting chairman Tarique Rahman will return to Bangladesh on December 25, ending nearly 18 years of exile in London.
“We are pleased to announce that our acting chairman Tarique Rahman will return to Dhaka on December 25,” BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told reporters after a meeting of the party’s standing committee.
Tarique, son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia and widely seen as a frontrunner for Bangladesh’s top office, has lived in the UK since 2008, after leaving the country for medical treatment while on bail during the 1/11 caretaker government period.
He was appointed BNP acting chairman in 2018, following Khaleda Zia’s imprisonment, and has since led the party from abroad. During Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League’s rule, he was convicted in absentia in multiple cases and faced around 100 lawsuits.
Following the collapse of the Awami League government on August 5 last year, all cases against him were withdrawn. BNP leaders said no cases are currently pending against Tarique Rahman.
His return comes amid heightened political activity ahead of the February 12 national election, and is expected to significantly reshape Bangladesh’s opposition politics.