Stepping barefoot on to the soil of his homeland and picking up a handful of earth, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman returned to Dhaka on Thursday, 25 December, ending more than 17 years of self-exile in the United Kingdom.
Addressing a huge crowd of people in Dhaka, who gathered to hear him speak, Rahman invoked American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr, stating, 'I have a dream.' Like him, I want to say, I have a plan for Bangladesh."
Paying homage to the 1971 Liberation War – Tarique Rahman said Bangladesh had been “liberated twice"- first in 1971 and again through the July 2024 student uprising – which saw former PM Sheikh Hasina's ouster.
He has emerged as a leading contender for the prime minister's post, even as the country's Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, has been trying to throw a stiff competition to the BNP in the polls – which are due on February 12, 2026.
Rahman was accompanied by wife Zubaida and daughter Zaima. They were received at the Hazrat Shahjalal International airport in Dhaka by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and other senior party leaders amid tight security.
During his speech, Tarique Rahman remembered BNP leader Osman Hadi, who succumbed to his injuries after being shot. Rahman said Osman Hadi had dreamt of a democratic Bangladesh and vowed that the BNP would strive to realise that vision.
“He gave his life believing in democracy," Tarique Rahman said, adding that the party would remain committed to restoring democratic norms and institutions.
On Tuesday, India sought a thorough probe into Hadi's death. India's call for a detailed probe into the case came as unsubstantiated allegations about an Indian hand in Hadi's death triggered anti-India sentiment in Bangladesh, reported PTI.
Rahman was living in London under self-imposed exile for 17 years amid multiple criminal convictions.
According to local media reports, Rahman left Bangladesh for London in 2008 – when Sheikh Hasina was in power – after what he has described as political persecution.
Back then, Tarique was reportedly facing trial on a slew of graft charges.