After returning to Bangladesh with his family after 17 years of exile, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman has left the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by bus for a mass reception in the capital’s Purbachal area.
The Bangladesh Biman Airlines flight carrying Tarique landed at the Dhaka airport around 11:40am on Thursday. At the airport, senior leaders of BNP, led by its Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and members of the party’s Standing Committee, welcomed him.
After completing immigration formalities, his wife Zubaida Rahman and daughter Zaima Rahman left the airport for their residence in Gulshan.
Tarique Rahman, meanwhile, exited the airport through the VVIP lounge and departed by bus for the mass reception venue at the 36 July Expressway (300 feet road) area of Purbachal, with the bus carrying the slogan “Sobar Agey Bangladesh” (Bangladesh First).
The BNP has organised the public reception to mark his homecoming, with a large stage measuring 48 feet by 36 feet constructed with bamboo and wood on the north side of the Kuril Intersection, facing south.
Earlier, at 9:58am, the same Bangladesh Biman Airlines flight landed at Osmani International Airport in Sylhet, and after nearly an hour of ground turnaround, it departed for Dhaka at 11:10am.
According to the statement, Tarique Rahman left London’s Heathrow Airport with his family at 6:36pm local time on Wednesday, which was 12:36am Bangladesh time on Thursday.
Following the installation of a military-backed caretaker government in January 2007, Tarique Rahman was arrested in corruption cases and spent about 18 months in prison. After his release, he travelled to London with his family on 11 September 2008, for medical treatment.
After the Awami League, whose activities are currently banned, came to power in the December 2008 election, his return to Bangladesh became increasingly difficult, and amid multiple cases, he remained abroad for years. With Thursday’s arrival, that long wait came to an end as Tarique Rahman returned to his homeland.
