After nearly 18-yr exile, Tarique on way to Bangladesh with Zubaida and Zaima
The Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight BG 202, carrying Tarique Rahman and his family, departed Heathrow Airport at 12:17am on Thursday (Bangladesh time)
Highlights:
- Tarique's flight departs London airport at 12:17am
- He is accompanied by his wife Zubaida and daughter Zaima
- He is scheduled to land in Dhaka Thursday morning
- Tarique to briefly address supporters at 300 Feet area tomorrow
- Thousands gather to welcome Tarique Rahman's homecoming
Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of the BNP, departed from London's Heathrow Airport on a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight around midnight (25 December), He is accompanied by his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman and daughter Zaima Rahman.
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The Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight BG 202, carrying Tarique Rahman and his family, departed Heathrow Airport at 12:17am on Thursday (Bangladesh time).
Tarique, who is returning home after living in exile for nearly 18 years in London, and his family entered the airport around 4pm local time (around 10pm Bangladesh time) today (Wednesday), according to live broadcast of several media outlets.
Tarique's late brother Arafat Rahman Koko's two daughters Jahia Rahman and Jafia Rahman. Journalist Saleh Shibli and a few of his personal aides are also on board the flight.
Zaima Rahman's pet cat, Jebu, is also travelling to Bangladesh with the family.
The flight is scheduled to land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka around 11:45am-11:50am Thursday.
Senior leaders, including members of the party's Standing Committee, will receive him at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
Engagements over the next three days
Tarique already has a packed three-day schedule combining personal engagements, political activities, and commemorative visits.
According to his adviser Mahdi Amin and interim government officials, strict security and protocol arrangements will be enforced immediately after the aircraft's landing.
After landing in Dhaka, Tarique's top priority will be to visit his ailing mother, former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, who is currently undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital.
However, considering the expected presence of a large number of party leaders, activists, and supporters eager to welcome him back home, Tarique will briefly attend a reception rally on the way to the hospital.
The BNP has prepared a stage for the rally at the capital's 300 Feet Road, where he will deliver a brief speech expressing gratitude and thanks to party supporters and people of the country.
Only Tarique will address the gathering, which is likely to be attended by hundreds of thousands of people who started arriving at the capital since Wednesday morning.
Afterwards, Tarique will proceed directly to Evercare Hospital to see his mother and later go to his residence in Gulshan, which he left behind one and a half decades back.
On Friday (26 December), after Jummah prayers, Tarique will visit the grave of his late father and former president Ziaur Rahman, to pay his respects, according to the itinerary – which may change depending on the situation – provided by BNP.
Then he will go to the National Memorial in Savar to pay tribute to the martyrs of the 1971 Liberation War.
On the third day of his schedule, Saturday (27 December), Tarique will visit the grave of Sharif Osman bin Hadi, a youth leader of July Uprising and the Inqilab Mancha spokesperson who was shot and killed earlier this month.
He will then go to the Election Commission to submit his voter registration application.
Later in the day, he is expected to visit the injured protesters of last year's July Uprising at the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Nitor), commonly known as Pongu Hospital.
BNP prepares offices and election hub for Tarique
After returning, Tarique will regularly work from the BNP Chairperson's office in Gulshan, where a new office room has been prepared for him on the second floor. A separate chamber has also been set up for the acting chairman at the party's Nayapaltan central office.
Both the Nayapaltan central office and the Gulshan chairperson's office have been freshly painted, cleaned and decorated to mark his return.
In preparation for the upcoming election, BNP has rented a four-storey building on Road No 90 in Gulshan as an election office. The building has strict security arrangements, a briefing room on the second floor, seating for various departments and a research cell.
Mahdi Amin said the office will serve as a coordination centre for all election-related activities.
Tarique's debut in national polls
Although Tarique has long been involved in leading the party and shaping its election strategies, he has never contested a parliamentary election himself.
This time, however, he is set to run in the 13th national parliamentary election from the Bogura-6 (Sadar) constituency.
His mother, former prime minister Khaleda Zia, has been contesting elections from Bogura-7 (Gabtoli and Shahjahanpur) since 1991 and from Bogura-6 (Sadar) since June 1996 – never losing in either seat.
Tarique is now stepping forward to contest from his mother's long-held constituency.
Khaleda Zia's Gulshan residence, situated on a 32-katha plot donated to her by the government in 1981, has been prepared for Tarique Rahman to stay with his family upon his return.
Tarique Rahman, the eldest son of BNP founder Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda, was arrested in 2007 following the change in political landscape during an army-backed caretaker rule, known as the 1/11 government.
Upon being released from jail, he left for the UK in 2008 for medical treatment, marking the beginning of his nearly 18-year exile.
During his exile, he faced numerous cases and legal hurdles. Following recent political changes and legal processes, he was cleared of all cases.
On 12 December, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir announced that Tarique Rahman will return on 25 December.
Although Zubaida Rahman had visited Bangladesh twice earlier, Tarique Rahman was unable to return until now. Even when his mother, former prime minister Khaleda Zia, was in a critical health condition, Tarique did not announce his return, as the family and medical board had decided to transfer her to London for advanced treatment at the time.
Zubaida Rahman arrived in Dhaka earlier this month to make preparations for Khaleda Zia's treatment abroad. However, those plans have since been put on hold, and the former prime minister will continue to receive medical care in Bangladesh for now.
Political analysts say the ongoing political crisis can only be resolved through elections, and Tarique Rahman's return may help ease tensions. They note that he successfully united dozens of parties in the anti-fascist movement, proving his political experience and organisational strength.
BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed at a press conference on Wednesday sincerely apologised in advance for any inconvenience or suffering caused by the unavoidable and minimal programmes taken by the party to organise the historic homecoming of its beloved leader.
He said Tarique has chosen a government holiday for his return to avoid public inconvenience.
