Bangladesh must not return to pre-August 5 situation: BNP chairman Tarique Rahman

Dhaka: Newly-appointed BNP chairman Tarique Rahman on Saturday said there is “no reason” for Bangladesh to return to the political conditions that existed before the toppling of Sheikh Hasina's regime on August 5, 2024.

Weeks ahead of the February 12 general elections, Rahman also claimed that his Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) would lead the country “in the right direction if it comes to power.”

Rahman, 60, has emerged as a leading contender for the post of the prime minister.

The Standing Committee of the BNP approved Rahman's appointment as the chairman of the party in a meeting on Friday, days after the demise of his mother, party chairperson and three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia on December 30 after a prolonged illness.

On Saturday, hours after his appointment, Rahman told editors and senior reporters, “We had problems in the past and we still have problems. But, we don’t want to go back to pre-August 5 days. There’s no reason for us to do that.”

“Although we have various kinds of differences among us, we should be able to minimise them through dialogue,” he said.

Rahman vowed to steer Bangladesh in the “right direction” if his party was elected to form the next government, adding the democratic process and accountability must continue.

If the spirit of 1971 Liberation War, 1990 mass upheaval against then president HM Ershad regime, and the August 5 uprising could be kept in mind, “I firmly believe, we will be able to guide the nation in the right direction,” he said.

Rahman unveiled some of his plans to transform public life in Bangladesh by focusing on health and economy, among other issues, saying this was his party's aim.

“My personal belief is this - if, at any cost, we can continue accountability and the democratic process, there may be many obstacles, and it may be very difficult. But if we can keep the democratic process going over a certain period of time, we will surely be able to bring change,” he added.

Rahman, however, did not explain BNP’s stance on evolving critical geopolitical scenarios or the changed domestic landscape ahead of the scheduled elections next month.

Hasina, who was ousted after violent student-led protests over July and August that year, fled to India on August 5, 2024.

Three days later, Muhammad Yunus took over as head of the interim government, which disbanded Hasina's Awami League party through an executive order. A special Bangladeshi tribunal subsequently sentenced Hasina to death penalty on charges of committing “crimes against humanity” through her “brutal” efforts to tame the student-led protests, termed the July Uprising.

With Hasina and her Awami League no longer in the fray, Rahman's BNP is the forerunner with its once crucial ally Jamaat-e-Islami being the main rival.

Earlier late on Friday night, the BNP posted on X: “Following the passing of BNP Chairperson and former Prime Minister, national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, the position of party Chairman became vacant. In line with the BNP constitution, a meeting of the National Standing Committee was held.”

“At the meeting, Mr Tarique Rahman was unanimously appointed to the vacant post and formally given responsibility as the Chairman of the BNP,” it added.

Rahman returned to Bangladesh on December 25 after 17 years of self-exile in London.

In 2002, Rahman was made BNP’s Senior Joint Secretary General and became Senior Vice Chairman in 2009. In 2018, when Zia was imprisoned, Rahman was appointed acting chairperson of the party.

“I have a plan,” he said in his first public address on the day he returned from UK, apparently referring to the African-American rights activist Martin Luther King’s famous quote, “I have a dream.”