Dhaka: After a turbulent political career that included years in exile, Tarique Rahman became the prime minister Tuesday of Bangladesh, a South Asian country of more than 176 million, following 18 months under a caretaker government. He took the oath of office in Dhaka as the 11th prime minister. Rahman is the first male premier since 1991 and will serve a five-year term.

According to Anadolu Agency, Rahman’s party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), has formed a new government following a decisive electoral victory in Thursday’s vote, which was the first since the July 2024 uprising that ousted Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government. The BNP secured 209 seats, well over the 151 required to form a majority, while its closest rival, an alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, won 77. In the run-up to the elections, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said Rahman would become prime minister if the party won, signaling a clear path to his premiership.

Born in 1967 in Dhaka, when the country was still called East Pakistan, Rahman has politics as part of his inheritance. He is the eldest son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and former President Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1981. Tarique Rahman was a teenager when his father was killed by members of the Bangladesh Army.

Rahman ‘has gathered considerable experience through his long political career,’ as he learned governance from his parents. ‘This legacy is a great treasure for him,’ Zakaria Polash, strategic coordinator of the Dhaka-based Communication and Research Foundation, told Anadolu. While it remains to be seen whether Rahman can live up to Khaleda Zia or Ziaur Rahman, it is ‘imperative’ for him to follow their approach to foreign policy, which is ‘to create a balance among international players,’ he said.

Rahman, also known as Tarique Zia, began studying international relations at BAF Shaheen College, Dhaka, in the 1980s. However, during that period, his political pursuits reportedly took precedence over academic ones, according to the Dhaka Tribune. He married cardiologist Zubaida Rahman in 1994, and the couple has a daughter, Zaima Zarnaz Rahman.

Rahman’s political journey also includes nearly two decades of exile in London, during which he remained a central decision-making figure in the party despite being abroad. His leadership from London, while providing ‘safety and continuity of party command,’ also created ‘a visible leadership vacuum on the ground,’ Rabeya said. During his years in exile, ‘many grassroots supporters felt that his voice was not as vocal or as forceful as the political situation demanded,’ she added.

Rahman eventually secured bail in all 13 of his cases and was released from prison after 18 months in September 2008. He left for London the same month. His party and family accused the authorities of subjecting Rahman to physical and mental torture during his detention. He returned to Bangladesh at the end of last year, in a significant moment for his role in Bangladeshi politics.

Ahead of the elections, the BNP pledged to build a Bangladesh where ‘terrorism, corruption, and discrimination are eliminated,’ while proposing to cap the prime minister’s tenure at 10 years and expand financial support for marginalized and low-income families. Time will show whether the party can translate those campaign promises into policy.

While holding the majority of the parliament is good for governance, it also creates a ‘potential vulnerability to turn ‘authoritative’ like Hasina,’ Polash said, warning that Rahman now has to consider the voice of the opposition while framing policies due to its popular vote size. ‘The country’s foreign policy should be guided by national interest,’ Rabeya said, outlining what she sees as the appropriate direction for future external engagement.