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Bangladeshi heavyweight person Tarique Rahman said Monday (October 6, 2025) helium would instrumentality "soon" aft 17 years successful self-imposed exile to contention the archetypal elections since a 2024 wide uprising.
Rahman, 59, heir to Bangladesh's longtime ruling household arsenic lad of erstwhile Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, is the acting president of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), wide seen arsenic a cardinal frontrunner successful the upcoming polls.
"For immoderate tenable reasons my instrumentality hasn't happened... but the clip has come, and I volition instrumentality soon, God willing," Rahman told BBC Bangla successful an interrogation broadcast Monday (October 6).
The elections, owed successful February 2026, volition beryllium the archetypal since a wide uprising ousted premier curate Sheikh Hasina past year, ending her 15-year hardline regularisation — during which she crushed the BNP.
Mr. Rahman, known successful Bangladesh arsenic Tarique Zia, has lived successful London since 2008, saying helium fled politically-motivated persecution.
Since Ms. Hasina's fall, Mr. Rahman has been acquitted of the astir superior complaint against him; a beingness condemnation handed down successful absentia for a 2004 grenade onslaught connected a Hasina rally, which helium ever denied.
Mr. Rahman has emerged arsenic an outspoken fig connected societal media and a rallying constituent for BNP supporters.
"I americium moving successful the election," helium told the BBC, speaking from London.
Regarding the anticipation of assuming bureau arsenic premier Minister if the BNP forms the government, helium said: "The radical volition decide."
It is unclear if his mother, 80-year-old Khaleda Zia, who has suffered sick wellness aft being jailed during Hasina's tenure, volition tally again herself oregon play a guiding relation down her son.
"She went to jailhouse successful bully wellness and returned with ailments, she was deprived of her close to due treatment," helium said.
"But... if her wellness permits, she volition decidedly lend to the election."
He besides spoke connected the prohibition connected Hasina's Awami League ordered by the interim authorities of Muhammad Yunus, who volition measurement down aft the elections.
Hasina, 78, has defied tribunal orders to instrumentality from India, wherever she fled past year, to be her proceedings for ordering a deadly crackdown against the uprising.
Hasina has refused to recognise the court's authority.
The charges magnitude to crimes against humanity successful Bangladesh.
"Those who are liable for specified cruelties, those who ordered them, indispensable beryllium punished. This is not astir vengeance," Tarique added.
"I powerfully judge radical cannot enactment a governmental enactment oregon its activists who murder, forcibly vanish people, oregon launder money," helium added.
