Indian envoy to Bangladesh Pranay Verma meets new BNP chairman Tarique Rahman

Key Highlights

• BNP emerged as the forerunner in Bangladesh politics, with its once crucial ally, Jamaat-e-Islami, being the main rival, ahead of the scheduled February 12 elections, in the absence of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s now disbanded Awami League.
• A student-led violent street movement toppled the Awami League government on August 5, 2024, while the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government disbanded the party in an executive order last year, debarring it from contesting the elections.
• Mr.
• Rahman has been steering BNP as its acting chairman since 2018.
• The party’s policy-making standing committee on Friday (January 9, 2026) night formally elected him as the party chief 10 days after his mother, BNP Chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, died following prolonged illness.