Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairman Tarique Rahman will be sworn in as Bangladesh’s new prime minister on Tuesday, February 17 at 4 pm — days after his party secured a landslide victory against Jamaat-e-Islami in Bangladesh elections.
Rahman’s BNP won 209 out of 297 seats, while the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami won 68 seats in the 13th parliamentary election. Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League was barred from voting.
Rahman would become Prime Minister for the first time. He will replace the interim head of government, Muhammad Yunus, under whose tenure Dhaka’s relations with Delhi have significantly deteriorated.
Yunus took over in August 2024 after Hasina’s Awami League regime collapsed following massive anti-government protests.
Tariq Rahman will be sworn in
Tarique Rahman’s swearing-in ceremony will break with long-standing tradition and be held at the South Square of the Parliament Complex instead of the Bangabhaban.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin will swear in the new cabinet members on Tuesday afternoon at the Jatiya Sangsad South Square, state news agency BSS reported on Monday.
“The Parliament Secretariat is scheduled to hold a swearing-in ceremony for the new cabinet members tomorrow at 4 pm,” Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat Secretary Kaniz Maula said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin will administer oath to all newly elected members of parliament.
All 297 newly elected legislators of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad (JS) “will first be sworn in as Members of Parliament (MPs) and then as members of the Constitutional Reform Council,” a press release from the JS Secretariat said.
The BNP has called a parliamentary party meeting at Parliament House for 11.30am to elect a parliamentary party leader.
“As the leader of the majority party, our party chairman Tarique Rahman will be the prime minister,” said Salah Uddin Ahmed, a BNP standing committee member.
Constitutional Dictate – Immediately after taking the oath, BNP MPs will elect their leader, who will be invited by the President to form the government, an official at the presidential palace in Bangabhaban said on Monday.
Om Birla will attend
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will represent India at Rahman’s swearing-in ceremony.
Foreign Minister Vikram Misri and Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh are also likely to accompany Birla.
BNP invited approximately 1,200 domestic and foreign guests to the event.
Maldivian President Mohammed Muizzoo, Turkish Deputy Minister Beris Ekinci and Sri Lankan Minister of Health and Mass Media Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa will be among those attending Rahman’s swearing-in ceremony.
“Two Big Challenges”
At a post-election press conference, Rahman called for “national unity” and “peace” in the national interest, warning that divisiveness undermines democracy, news agency PTI reported.
He said the country was facing a fragile economy, weakened institutions and a deteriorating law and order situation.
“Our paths and opinions may differ, but for the sake of the country, we must remain united. I firmly believe that national unity is our collective strength, while division is our weakness,” she quoted him as saying.
He said the new government faces two major challenges – to deal with the economy and ensure good governance.
Rahman’s comeback
Rahman, the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and BNP founder late President Ziaur Rahman, returned home two months ago after living in exile in London for 17 years.
His main credentials are dynastic, but he has not yet held any public office. Analysts say his family background has given him a certain kind of political acumen.
When asked by a journalist how he would reconcile with the millions of Awami League supporters, Rahman replied, “By ensuring the rule of law”.
In response to a related question, he said there was “no room for the politics of revenge”, warning that attacks based on political affiliation or differing views would not be tolerated.
Bangladesh election results
Bangladesh held its landmark 13th parliamentary election on February 12 after a period of tumultuous political vacuum, instability and a fragile security situation, including widespread attacks on minorities following the fall of Hasina’s 15-year rule.
Four candidates from minority communities, including two Hindus, all from the BNP, won the election.
Goyeshwar Chandra Roy, a member of the BNP’s supreme policy-making committee, and Nitai Roy Chowdhury, one of the party’s vice-presidents, won their seats.
The third minority MP elected is Saching Pru, a BNP leader and follower of the Buddhist faith, while the fourth minority candidate, Dipen Dewan, belongs to the majority Buddhist Chakma ethnic minority.
Hindus make up approximately eight percent of the population in the Muslim-majority country of 170 million people.
Jamaat-e-Islami Deputy General Secretary and Liaison Committee Coordinator of the 11-party alliance, AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, said they want to play a constructive role as an opposition party.