Barefoot Return After 17 Years: Will PM Hopeful Tarique Rahman Reshape Bangladesh Politics?

BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman returns to Bangladesh after 17 years in UK exile, stepping into a chaotic political landscape and emerging as a key contender ahead of the February elections.

After more than 17 years of self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman finally set foot on home soil on Thursday — a moment many in Bangladesh have been anticipating for over a decade.

The 60-year-old political heir arrived in Dhaka with his wife Zubaida Rahman and daughter Zaima Rahman, greeted by BNP Standing Committee members and cheering supporters. 

His return also coincided with a particularly turbulent phase in the country’s politics — following the killing of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi, a figure instrumental in the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Tarique Rahman’s return was marked by a symbolic gesture as he stepped barefoot onto Bangladeshi soil upon arrival. For many BNP loyalists, that gesture spoke volumes — it symbolised exile, struggle, uncertainty, and hope returning home.

A Political Legacy Shaped by Family — and Upheaval

Tarique Rahman’s political journey has always been inseparable from his family history. The elder son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, he grew up under the shadow of Bangladesh’s most politically influential dynasty.

His father, Ziaur Rahman, rose to prominence after the turbulence that followed the 1975 coup — embedding the Zia name permanently into the country’s political fabric. When Ziaur Rahman was assassinated, Tarique was only 15. His mother would go on to become the country’s first female prime minister, alternating power — and rivalry — with Sheikh Hasina in what came to be known as the “Battle of the Begums.”

Over the years, Tarique was groomed for leadership — sometimes celebrated, sometimes criticised. Yet, whether admired or mistrusted, he was never irrelevant.

Rahman has now emerged as a key contender for the prime minister’s post in the February elections.

Exile, Trials and the Changing Political Map

Rahman fled Bangladesh in 2008, claiming politically motivated persecution. His years abroad were marked by legal battles, court verdicts in absentia, and persistent controversy — including the life sentence handed down for allegedly orchestrating the 2004 grenade attack on a Sheikh Hasina rally. The BNP always insisted the cases were meant to erase the Zia family from politics.

But the country he has returned to is very different.

The Awami League government was toppled in August 2024 after the student-led July Uprising. The BNP now stands as the front-runner heading into the February general elections, while its former ally Jamaat-e-Islami now emerges as its main rival. Under the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Awami League itself has been disbanded by the interim government.

BNP spokesman Ruhul Kabir Rizvi summed up the moment simply: "This will be a defining political moment."

A Personal Return — and a Son’s Duty

The political stakes may be high, but for Tarique Rahman, this homecoming is also intensely personal.

In a Facebook post on November 29, he wrote: “Like any child,” he longs to be near his critically ill mother at her “moment of crisis”.

His mother, now 80, has endured imprisonment, illness and isolation. The image of a son returning after nearly two decades — not just as a political figure, but as a child who wants to sit beside his mother — has struck an emotional chord with many.

Between Hope, Criticism and an Uncertain Future

Rahman remains a complex figure — hailed by supporters as a future prime minister, criticised by opponents, and watched closely by the international community.

As BNP leaders and activists filled the airport road, the party described the day simply as transformative. For others, his return raises tough questions: about accountability, justice, power, and whether Bangladesh is now entering a new political era — or circling back to a familiar one.

Yet one thing is clear: Tarique Rahman has come home not as an exile, but as a contender, stepping back into a political arena reshaped by revolt, uncertainty and pent-up expectations.

And as he made his way from the airport toward Evercare Hospital, where he is expected to see his mother, there was a rare moment when politics and humanity seemed to merge — a reminder that beyond the battles and slogans, this is also a story of return, family, and unfinished chapters.