Dhaka, December 25: Tariq Rahman, son of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, arrived home from London today after 17 years with his wife and daughter.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight BG 202 carrying them landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at around 11:42 am. The plane stopped in Sylhet for more than an hour and then departed for Dhaka at 11:12 am. Tariq is the acting chairperson of the BNP. He will contest the general elections to be held in February.
According to The Daily Star newspaper, Tariq got off the plane barefoot and then picked up a handful of soil. Tariq Rahman, his wife Zubaida Rahman, and daughter Zaima Rahman were welcomed at the airport by BNP General Secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed. Tariq’s mother-in-law and sister-in-law welcomed the family in the airport’s VIP lounge at 11:56 a.m.
Following the welcome, Tariq and his family were escorted out of the airport under tight security at 12:33 p.m.
Tariq wrote on his Facebook profile at around 9:30 a.m., “After 6,314 long days in Bangladesh’s skies.” He added that the plane was scheduled to land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 11:50 a.m. A bulletproof bus was arranged at the airport for Tariq and his family members. The specially designed bus is red and green in color. Large pictures of Khaleda Zia, Tariq Rahman, and party founder Ziaur Rahman adorn its sides. Slogans highlighting democracy and political struggle are also written on the vehicle. Tariq left the airport on this bus amid tight security.
He will visit his ailing mother at Evercare Hospital today. Tariq Rahman’s plane departed from London’s Heathrow Airport for Dhaka at around 12:30 a.m. Bangladesh time on Wednesday night. Around 50 party leaders and activists also returned to Bangladesh with him.
According to a Prothom Alo report, Tariq, accompanied by his wife, Zubaida, and daughter, arrived at House No. 196 on Gulshan Avenue. The three waved to the crowd. Khaleda Zia’s house (Firoza) is located next to House No. 196. Police, Border Guard Bangladesh, and Rapid Action Battalion personnel were deployed there. Meanwhile, BNP leaders and activists stood on both sides of the road, holding placards, banners, and flowers. They chanted slogans like “Welcome Tariq Rahman” and “Welcome the Leader of the Nation.” Tariq Rahman spoke briefly by telephone with the leader of the interim government, Prof. Mohammad Yunus.