Former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia has been buried next to her husband, former president Ziaur Rahman at Chandrima Udyan on the north side of the parliament.
On Wednesday, she was laid to eternal rest with full state honours.
The final rites for Begum Khaleda Zia commenced at around 4:15pm. Her eldest son and the party’s acting chairman, Tarique Rahman, was the first to descend into her grave. After laying his mother to rest, he emerged a short while after 4:30pm.
Following the burial, Tarique scattered soil over the grave. One by one, daughters-in-law Zubaida Rahman and Shamila Rahman, granddaughter Zaima Rahman, and the two daughters of the late Arafat Rahman Koko, Zakia Rahman and Zafiya Rahman, also scattered soil into their grandmother’s grave.
Earlier in the day, her namaz-e-janaza was concluded at the Jatiya Sangsad premises in the capital in the presence of her son, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman, who returned to the country after 17 years in exile, his wife Zubaida Rahman and their daughter Zaima Rahman.
The funeral prayer was conducted by Mufti Muhammad Abdul Malek, Khatib of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque, at 3:04pm.
A sea of mourners have joined the funeral and paid their last respects to the BNP chairperson, who was the first female prime minister of the country.
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury also attended the funeral. They were joined by the chiefs of the armed forces — Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman, Navy Chief Admiral M Nazmul Hassan, and Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan – in addition to foreign leaders from neighbouring countries.
Foreign dignitaries included Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shri Bala Nanda Sharma, Sri Lankan foreign minister Vijitha Herath, and Bhutan’s Foreign Affairs and External Trade Minister Lyonpo DN Dhungyel arrived in Dhaka on special flights.
Khaleda Zia was admitted to Evercare Hospital in Dhaka on 23 November. Tests conducted three days later revealed a lung infection, after which she was moved to the Critical Care Unit on 27 November.
A medical board was formed with local and foreign physicians under the leadership of Professor Shahabuddin Talukder. Specialist doctors from China and the United Kingdom were part of the medical board overseeing her treatment.
Khaleda Zia passed away at 6am on Tuesday while undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital in the capital.
