By Poonam Sharma
After seventeen years in self-imposed exile, Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), returned to Dhaka on Thursday, December 25, 2025. His arrival at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport marks a significant shift in the country’s volatile political landscape as it moves toward the first general elections since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.
Rahman, 60, was greeted by thousands of supporters in a homecoming that serves as both a logistical milestone for the BNP and a symbolic challenge for the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus. As the nation prepares for the February 12, 2026 polls, Rahman’s presence centralizes the debate over whether Bangladesh is returning to its traditional dynastic roots or forging a new democratic path.
Historical Context and Political Lineage
The political identity of Tarique Rahman is rooted in the foundational history of Bangladesh. He is the son of the late President Ziaur Rahman, founder of the BNP, and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. For three decades, Bangladeshi governance was characterized by the “Battle of the Begums”—a period of intense rivalry between Zia’s BNP and Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League.
Rahman departed for London in 2008 following a crackdown by a military-backed caretaker government. During the subsequent 15-year tenure of the Awami League, he faced numerous legal challenges. These included a conviction in absentia for his alleged role in a 2004 grenade attack on an Awami League rally. While Rahman and the BNP have consistently maintained these charges were politically motivated, critics and certain international diplomatic cables from that era frequently associated his leadership with systemic corruption and political violence.
A Shifting Legal and Political Landscape
The collapse of the Sheikh Hasina administration in August 2024 precipitated a rapid overhaul of the country’s judicial and political structures. Under the current interim government, many of the convictions against Rahman have been stayed or overturned, with courts citing a lack of due process in the original trials.
Upon his return, Rahman addressed a massive rally with a message focused on national unity rather than partisan retribution. “It is time for us all to build the country together,” he stated, referencing both the 1971 independence war and the 2024 uprising. This rhetoric appears designed to align the BNP with the “New Bangladesh” sentiment championed by the student-led movement that ended the previous regime.
The 2026 Election: Competing Visions
The upcoming February election introduces a “new political geometry” for Bangladesh. With the Awami League currently barred from participation, the electoral contest has shifted. Recent data from the International Republican Institute (IRI) illustrates a fractured electorate: Political Entity Estimated Support (%)
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) 30%
Jamaat-e-Islami 26%
National Citizen Party (NCP) 6%
Undecided/Other 38%
This polling suggests that while the BNP holds a plurality, it faces significant competition from its former ally, the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami. In response, the BNP has sought to distance itself from religious hardliners, adopting a more centrist, secular-liberal stance to appeal to urban voters and international stakeholders.
Institutional Reforms and Future Challenges
Rahman returns to a country in the midst of profound institutional reform. Voters in February will also consider the “July Charter,” a referendum aimed at decentralizing executive power and imposing a two-term limit on the Prime Minister.
The success of Rahman’s leadership will likely depend on his ability to bridge two distinct groups:
The Old Guard: The loyal party apparatus that endured a decade and a half of state repression.
Generation Z: The youth-led revolutionary base that remains skeptical of all traditional political dynasties and demands “systemic change” over a mere change in personnel.
As Bangladesh moves toward the February mandate, Rahman’s return ensures that the BNP remains the central pillar of the traditional political establishment, even as the country grapples with the demands of a new, more critical electorate.
