Why “Bangladesh First” Is Coherent Politics and “We Are the People” Is a Theological Trap for Jamaat. The first is a moral ordering principle which prioritizes responsibility. The second is a sovereignty claim and defines power.
Is tinkering with the formal rules of the game the triumph of hope over experience (this time politics will be different)? Or a more technocratic faith in the power of institutional architecture to push back against the potent political imperatives of rents and control (we can design our way to democracy)? Either way, fixing the rules seems a misplaced focus when history has shown that the amassing of political power rapidly renders such niceties ornamental.
Whatever path you ultimately choose, I offer you my sincere best wishes. May your journey ahead be guided by wisdom, courage, and purpose -- and may it be as smooth and fulfilling as destiny permits.
In a riverine land such as ours, mainstream might be a more evocative term -- BNP represents the confluence of various cultural, historical, social milieus that continue to flow through us. As Mrs Zia has memorably put it, BNP situates itself to the left of the right, and to the right of the left.
As we enter the final phase before elections Jamaat-e-Islami may be poised to win far more votes than previously predicted. There is still time for BNP to regain the momentum if it appreciates the situation and pivots accordingly. But there is little evidence that it does so.
The axes of Bangladeshi politics have shifted dramatically. Where do the political parties line up in the new dynamic?
Tarique Rahman’s return is undeniably historic. But history alone does not guarantee success. The comparison with 1972 is not about personalities -- it is about the structural burden placed on returning leaders in moments of national uncertainty.
That Bangladesh did not turn into a hardcore right-wing country is because of Tarique. The country continues to progress as a centrist, tolerant nation. For this, we should forever remain indebted to him.
Tarique returns to Bangladesh as the indispensable man of Bangladeshi politics, the fulcrum of its democratic transition, the lynchpin of its liberal politics, and the prime minister in waiting.
He will be judged relentlessly -- by the standards set by his parents, both as leaders and as human beings. This is not merely the end of a prolonged absence abroad; it marks the closure of a painful chapter shaped more by political banishment than personal choice.
Khaleda Zia’s mixed record of democratic contribution, confrontation-driven politics and unresolved party succession continues to influence the country’s search for renewed leadership
Bangladesh’s post-Hasina politics is marked by a fierce contest between old elites and rising aspirants vying to fill newly opened power spaces. This debate is simply one front in this broader elite struggle reshaping the country’s political future.
If Tarique wishes to be prime minister and lead this nation, as his mother and father did before him, then a time comes when he needs to step up and stand up, and show the nation that he too is made of the stuff of leaders. This is such a time.
The real question is not why Tarique Rahman has not returned yet. The real question is whether the nation will stay focused on restoring democracy rather than chasing distractions.
November 20, 2025 was Tarique Rahman's 60th birthday. With elections around the corner, and the country on the cusp of transformative change, here is a well-wisher's wish-list of what he would like to see from the BNP and its leader after the February polls.
