BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman is finally returning to Bangladesh on December 25 from the UK after 17 years in exile, putting to rest the speculation about his homecoming.
“I am happy to announce that our party’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman will set foot on Dhaka’s soil on December 25,” BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said at a briefing last night after attending an emergency meeting at the Chairperson’s office.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star’s Google News channel. Fakhrul said, “The obstacles that were created in the path to democracy, we believe, will be removed when Tarique Rahman arrives in the country.”
According to party sources, Tarique called the emergency meeting, where he informed senior leaders about his return.
“I have decided to return to the country. I will be returning on December 25th. You are my colleagues, long-time companions. I thought you should know my decision before it becomes public,” Tarique said to the senior leaders virtually.
His decision came a day after the announcement of the election schedule and party insiders said it was made considering his mother’s health condition and the current political situation ahead of the polls.
They said Tarique will be given a grand reception at the airport, making his “homecoming a historic and memorable day.”
During the 1/11 government, Tarique was arrested on March 7, 2007. He was granted bail on September 3, 2008, and left for London with his family on September 11 for medical treatment.
Tarique has been living in London with his wife, Zubaida Rahman, and daughter, Zaima Rahman. Zubaida arrived in Dhaka on December 5 to look after her mother-in-law’s treatment.
Since the mass uprising, there had been widespread speculation about Tarique’s imminent return. It grew even louder after he met Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus in London on June 13 this year.
On October 6, in an interview with BBC Bangla, Tarique was asked when he planned to return to Bangladesh. He replied, “Very soon, Inshallah.”
On November 29, in a Facebook post, Tarique said he longs to be with his ailing mother, Khaleda Zia, who had been hospitalised with multiple complications.
“At such a moment of crisis, like any child, I too have a strong longing to feel my mother’s loving touch. But unlike others, the opportunity for me to make an independent decision in this regard [returning] is neither unrestricted nor fully within my control.”
During Awami League’s tenure, Tarique was convicted in absentia in five cases and faced around 100 lawsuits. Following the fall of the AL government, all charges against him were dropped. There are currently no pending cases against him.
On June 12, Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said there is no government bar on Tarique’s return.
On November 30, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain said the government can issue a “one-time” travel pass within a day, facilitating Tarique’s return to the country if he wishes.
GULSHAN HOUSES READY
According to party sources, Tarique will stay at both House 79 and House 196 in Gulshan.
The house on plot 196, built on 32 kathas of land and given to Khaleda Zia by the government in 1981, is now being prepared for her elder son, they added.
After the assassination of former president Ziaur Rahman, Tarique’s father and founder of BNP, on May 31, 1981, Khaleda was allotted the house.
On June 5, the interim government officially registered the house in her name.
Party insiders said the BNP has received assurance from the government that security arrangements will be provided to Tarique upon his return.
The BNP, which is maintaining constant contact with the government, is also taking its own steps to address and secure Tarique’s safety ahead of his arrival.
POLITICAL CAREER
At the age of 22, Tarique became a member of the Gabtali upazila BNP in Bogura district in 1988. He had been involved in politics even before formally joining the organisation.
He took part in the nationwide election campaign alongside his mother during the 1991 election.
In 2002, Tarique was appointed senior joint secretary general of the party.
He lost his brother, Arafat Rahman Koko, while in exile in London. During his time abroad, he was elected senior vice-chairman at the BNP’s Fifth National Council in 2009 and re-elected to the position at the Sixth National Council in 2016.
Since the imprisonment of Khaleda in the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case on February 8, 2018, Tarique has been serving as the acting chairman of the BNP.
Tarique is set to run in the 13th national parliamentary election from the Bogura-6 (Sadar) constituency.