Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) supremo Tariq Rahman has emerged as the frontrunner in the country’s upcoming elections for the first time since ousting former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Zaima Rahman was seen sitting in a rickshaw handing out leaflets in support of her. (screengrab/x)While Rahman is campaigning across the country for the February 12 elections, his daughter Jaima is showing support in the capital, Dhaka. In one video, Rahman’s daughter is seen in a rickshaw handing out leaflets in support of people.
Rahman, 60, rejected an offer from his primary rival for a unity government on Friday and expressed confidence in next week’s election, according to Reuters.
BNP Chairperson Ma Khaleda Zia, who has been in exile for the past two decades, returned to Bangladesh in December last year when her health deteriorated. Zia, who died on December 30, 2025, was the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
The country has been governed by an interim government since Hasina was ousted in July 2024 following a youth-led uprising.
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Confident will be enough to form government: Tariq RahmanRahman said in an interview at his party office that he was confident that the BNP “will be enough to form the government.” This is even as opinion polls predict a BNP victory, with a stiff challenge expected from arch-rival Jamaat-e-Islami, Reuters reported. The group was previously banned but now flourishes in the public space.
The BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami formed governments together between 2001 and 2006, with the latter recently saying it was open to renewing the partnership for a unity government, Reuters reported. However, Rahman refused to join hands with the party.
“How can I form a government with my political opponent, and then who will be in the opposition?” BNP chairperson raised the question. “I don’t know what their number of seats will be, but if they are in the opposition, I expect them to be a good opposition,” Reuters quoted him as saying.
