Bangladesh is approaching another sham election. Participating in an election under Hasina, against the aspirations of the Bangladeshi people, would undermine the sacrifices of those who fought, shed blood and gave their lives for democracy. In an interview with the news agency AFP, acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Tarique Rahman commented on the election.

He told AFP that the ruling Awami League government is targeting him in a ‘brutal and blatant manner’.

Tarique Rahman remarked on the upcoming 12th parliament election on January 7, stating that Bangladesh Awami League will conduct another fraudulent election. He mentioned including “dummy” opposition candidates aligned with the ruling party to give the election legitimacy. Rahman asserted that it will create “an impression of competition even though all results are predetermined”. 

He expressed that it wouldn’t be appropriate for his party to participate in elections that have already been predetermined.

In an email interview with AFP from London, Tarique Rahman also alleged that the Awami League is attempting to drive up turnout by coercing individuals through threats to withhold government services.

According to the AFP report, Tarique Rahman belongs to one of the two prominent political dynasties in the country, with the other being led by Sheikh Hasina. He has been leading the largest opposition party since his mother, two-time prime minister Khaleda Zia, was imprisoned in 2018. Last year, in 2023, her party orchestrated a month-long protest demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, resulting in at least 11 fatalities and the arrest of thousands of supporters.

The reports mentioned that Rahman has maintained a low profile in London since departing his country shortly before Hasina assumed power. He’s seldom observed in public, making occasional appearances primarily at weddings of influential members of the Bangladeshi diaspora or gatherings commemorating national holidays.

However, following Zia’s imprisonment on corruption charges in 2018 and her current confinement to a Dhaka hospital due to declining health, Rahman has assumed leadership of the largest opposition party in South Asia on her behalf. He engages with party members regularly through video and phone conferences, providing daily guidance and direction.

According to the reports, the BNP orchestrated extensive rallies, industrial strikes, and road blockades last year, causing the capital to come to a standstill. The campaign’s goal was the resignation of Hasina and establishing a neutral caretaker government to supervise the election—an established tradition in Bangladeshi politics that her administration had abolished. A rally in October culminated in violence, and the BNP alleged that approximately 25,000 opposition supporters were apprehended during the subsequent crackdown. However, the government claims the number is around 11,000.

Rahman refuted allegations attributing his party to a series of arson attacks amid the protests, dismissing them as a pretext for the government’s crackdown.

Tarique Rahman criticised the verdict on the case involving the grenade attack during the Awami League rally in 2004, labelling it politically motivated. He accused Hasina of rewarding the police officer who spearheaded the investigation against him by nominating them for a parliamentary position in the upcoming election.

In his first interview with international media in recent years, Rahman stated, “I am being targeted in a brutal and blatant manner. Even after 15 years of power, this regime has failed to produce [any] single genuine evidence.”