Search Results - Rahman, Tareque

Tarique Rahman

Tarique Rahman, }} (born 20 November 1965), better known natively as Tarique Zia,, }} is a Bangladeshi politician who has been the chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since January 2026. He previously held the position of acting chairman since February 2018, following the imprisonment of his mother, Khaleda Zia until her death. He is the eldest son of the 7th President of Bangladesh, Ziaur Rahman, and the first female prime minister of Bangladesh, Khaleda Zia.

Rahman got involved in politics from a young age and rose to prominence in the BNP during his mother's tenure as prime minister in the early 2000s. After the Awami League's landslide victory in the 2008 general election, he went into self-imposed exile in London, citing concerns for his safety and claiming that he was being persecuted by the authorities. He was convicted by the courts during the Sheikh Hasina government on multiple charges, including corruption, bribery, money laundering, illegal acquisition of wealth, and grenade attacks. A total of 84 cases were filed against him after 2007. BNP claims that these are politically motivated false charges. Later in 2024, after the fall of the Awami League government, the court acquitted him of all charges, and his sentence was quashed. He returned to Bangladesh on 25 December 2025.

During his years in London, Rahman has been often described as the ''de facto'' leader of the opposition in Bangladesh. He has drawn significant controversy in national politics, facing a myriad of accusations of corruption, bribery, and money-laundering charges and being linked to several controversies, including the use of Hawa Bhaban as a parallel power centre. Provided by Wikipedia