DHAKA: The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has announced a major leadership change after its standing committee unanimously appointed Tarique Rahman as the party’s new chairman.
The decision was approved during a meeting of the BNP Standing Committee held on Friday night at the party’s Gulshan office. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir confirmed the decision while speaking to the media after the meeting.
The post of party chairman fell vacant following the death of former prime minister and BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia. Under the party constitution, the standing committee convened to fill the vacancy and unanimously chose Tarique Rahman to lead the party.
Party sources said Rahman began his political career alongside his mother during the movement against military ruler General Hussain Muhammad Ershad. He formally joined the BNP in 1988 and played an active role in nationwide election campaigns with Khaleda Zia ahead of the 1991 general elections.
In 2002, the party appointed him as senior joint secretary general. He later became BNP’s senior vice chairman in 2009. After Khaleda Zia was jailed in 2018, the party named Rahman as acting chairman.
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Rahman left the country in 2007 following his arrest during the “1/11” political crisis and went abroad for medical treatment. He returned to Bangladesh on December 25, 2025, after nearly 17 years in exile.
With his appointment as chairman, the BNP has entered a new phase of leadership and political direction.
