Tarique Rahman Returning to Bangladesh on December 25; BNP Ready to Welcome Him

PNN News Desk, Dhaka

BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman will return to Bangladesh on December 25. Party Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir confirmed this during a briefing at BNP Chairperson’s office in Gulshan on Friday night.

Mirza Fakhrul said Tarique Rahman will be welcomed by the party. “With his return, obstacles on the path to democracy will be removed. We seek cooperation from party leaders and workers to ensure his arrival goes smoothly.”

Tarique Rahman was arrested following the 2007 caretaker government’s “1/11” political transition. He was released in 2008 and went to the UK for medical treatment, remaining there since. After last year’s August 5 student-led uprising and the fall of the Awami League government, various convictions against him were annulled, paving the way for his return.

The briefing also discussed the shooting of Inquilab Munch convener Osman Hadi. Mirza Fakhrul condemned the attack, calling for swift legal action against the perpetrators, warning that some forces are trying to disrupt elections.

At Dhaka Medical College, tension arose outside the hospital while Fakhrul and others checked Osman Hadi’s health. Police and army personnel managed the crowd.

Mirza Fakhrul urged everyone to maintain peace and ensure free and fair elections. Present at the briefing were BNP Standing Committee members including Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan, Ameer Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Salahuddin Ahmed, Selima Rahman, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud, and Major (Retd) Hafiz Uddin.