Feb 17, 2026, 1:11 p.mFeb 17, 2026, 1:11 p.m
A year and a half after the dramatic fall of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh again has an elected head of government.
Long-time opposition politician and leader of the right-wing conservative Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Tarique Rahman, was sworn in as the new prime minister in Dhaka. His party won the parliamentary election last week well ahead of the country’s largest Islamist party, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami.
Tarique Rahman lived in exile in London for 17 years before December 2025.Image: keystone
The early election was also seen as a test for an orderly democratic transition in the predominantly Muslim country in South Asia. Almost 128 million people were eligible to vote.
Scion of a political dynasty
BNP leader Rahman only returned to his homeland from London in December after 17 years in exile. The 60-year-old is taking over the reins of office from Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, who was appointed interim head of government after the unrest in the summer of 2024. In addition, Bangladesh’s President Mohammed Shahabuddin has now administered the oath of office to 25 new ministers.
Rahman comes from a political dynasty. He is a son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and former President Ziaur Rahman. Zia’s bitter rivalry with Sheikh Hasina had shaped the poor country’s politics for decades and blocked important reforms. After his election, Tarique Rahman declared that maintaining “law and order” was a priority.
After mass protests against the government and clashes between demonstrators and security forces, the increasingly authoritarian Hasina fled to India at the beginning of August 2024, which has since given her protection. Hundreds of people died in the riots. (sda/dpa)