Dhaka: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman on Saturday visited Dhaka University and offered prayers at the grave of slain student leader Sharif Osman Hadi amid heavy security.
The 60-year-old BNP leader also offered prayers at the grave of Bangladesh’s national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, located beside the Dhaka University Central Mosque, The Daily Star newspaper reported.
Hadi was buried beside the grave of Nazrul Islam on December 20.
He was a prominent figure of the July 2024 uprising that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government last year.
After paying tribute at Osman Hadi’s grave, Rahman was scheduled to proceed to the Election Commission office in Agargaon to complete registration for his national identity card and be enlisted as a voter.
Rahman returned to Dhaka after spending over 17 years in exile, marking a transformational moment in Bangladeshi politics. The heir to Bangladesh’s longtime ruling family and a leading opposition figure, the 60-year-old arrived in Dhaka after living in London since 2008. He fled the country amid what he has described as politically motivated persecution.
In his first address to his supporters, Rahman said Bangladesh had been “liberated twice”- first in 1971 and again through the July 2024 uprising. He called for the creation of an inclusive Bangladesh, urging participation from all communities and ethnic groups. He said unity and equal representation would be central to the party’s political vision going forward.
As acting BNP chairman, Tarique Rahman is expected to assume full leadership of the party from his ailing mother, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who is 80. He travelled with his wife, Dr Zubaida Rahman, and daughter Zaima Rahman.
Rahman was arrested during the 2007 caretaker government and spent about 18 months in jail before leaving for the United Kingdom in 2008 for medical treatment. After the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, he has emerged as a leading contender for the post of prime minister in the upcoming February general elections.
