Tarique Rahman spent 17 years in exile. His biggest challenge may still lie ahead

Tarique Rahman spent 17 years in self-imposed exile.

- Associated Press

Now, he is poised to become the prime minister of Bangladesh — and follow in the footsteps of his mother.Thursday's national election handed Rahman's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) a majority, marking a significant political shift in the South Asian nation of more than 170 million people. The BNP has also claimed victory.

For Rahman, the turnaround is dramatic. The 60-year-old returned from London in December to a country in turmoil. Within days, his mother, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, died from long illness.

In the election, he faced a rising religious conservative party that had gained momentum after a 2024 student-led uprising toppled Zia's longtime rival, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

‘And yet his biggest challenge may still lie ahead.

The path from the 2024 uprising to Thursday's election has been marked by turmoil. Bangladesh grappled with unrest after a student leader's death, a resurgence of Islamist groups, the fraying of the rule of law, attacks on Hindu minorities and the press, as well as struggling economy.