Tareq Rahman

POV|date=September 2008

Tareq Rahman, often spelled as Tarique Rahman, is a Bangladeshi politician. He is Senior Joint Secretary-General of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). His mother is Khaleda Zia, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh and the Chairperson of BNP. Tareq Rahman's father is the late President Ziaur Rahman. His principal responsibility was in the Party is to reorganize the Party to meet the challenges of the 21st century. He is specially assigned for rejuvenating Party’s student front.

Political career

Tareq is the youngest leader to become Joint Secretary-General of BNP. He was elevated to this position in June 2002, in response to rising demand from ranks and files of the Party, in recognition of his contribution in last general election, which brought a landslide victory. Tarique identified the challenges for BNP and planned its strategies and tactics to cope with the situation. In 1998, he established a research cell for the party and drew in the expertise of academics, professionals and business entrepreneurs along with the experiences, of politicians to plan for the future of the party.

Tareq worked to establish a competitive edge in the textiles industry and in the river transport sector. However, his passion has remained in politics, being inspired by the ideals of his father as well as his mother. It was his father Ziaur Rahman, whose declaration of Independence in March 1971, following the genocide, inspired the people for the liberation war. On 7th November 1975 Ziaur Rahman once again captured the imagination of the people, when he was freed from captivity through a mass upsurge defeating the traitors and agents of foreign power. Ziaur Rahman re-introduced popular democracy, multi-party system, free press and open market policy. He was extremely popular and was elected President of the country in 1978. Unfortunately, he was assassinated in 1981.

Tareq was only a teenager when his father was assassinated. But he was matured enough to understand the significance of what his father had tried to achieve. He is deeply committed to safeguard sovereignty and promote development of Bangladesh. He is in favour of promoting investments for industrialization and development of the service as well as Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector that will result in creation of employment opportunities. He believes in the expanding country’s private sector, establishing an efficient and dynamic administration.

Tareq accompanied his mother BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia, during the election campaign in 1991. She was the first woman to be elected Prime Minister of Bangladesh and has been elected to this post thrice. Tarek worked closely for the Party during the general election campaign in 1996. Since then he has been involved intensively in his home district, Bogra, to institutionalize a democratic culture in the Party. His efforts, commonly known as the `Bogra Model’, which has become very popular among the root level party workers, have resulted in a system of electing Party leadership from the grassroots. As the Joint Secretary General-1 he is now encouraging implementation of this Model through out the country.

After the win of the BNP-led four party alliance in the elections of 2001, Tarique started to strengthen his position in the BNP. After he took office as the Joint General Secretary, he launched a program under which he attended hundreds of meetings between himself and party activists of sub-district level. Many leaders of the party accompanied him in these meetings. During his attendance in the Tungipara sub-district, he visited the tomb of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and paid his utmost respect on behalf of the party as a party leader. Bangladesh Awami League remained silent about Tarique's visit to it's leader's tomb but Tarique's visit created a great impact specially to the young activists and supporters of the party. Though Bangladesh Awami League and its branch organization have always kept officially making abusive remarks on Tarique's father and the founder of BNP Ziaur Rahman, Tarqiue's visit urged a change in the BNP's view to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. That series of meetings with grass root activists helped his image to be more like a popular party organizer than just the son of the party founder or the party chair.

After the news of Tareq's falling upon the toilet floor (during his detention in BSMMU) broke out on 28 August, 2008, a chain of events was triggered in Dhaka and all over the country. The Dhaka protest was initiated students from Dhaka University and Dhaka College. Other larger protests took place in Rajshahi University, Chittagong University, Mymensingh Medical College and in some other districts. Later the protest and upsurge was controlled after Tarique's physicians assured injury due to the accident was not serious. But the overall protest was a big shake across the country amid the state of emergency and Tarique's image and popularity was clarified.

Tareq Rahman married to Dr. Zubaida Rahman is a physician working as government servant. His daughter Zaima is thirteen years old.

Criticism

At the age of 42 Tareq made his first significant step in politics in 2002, when ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party was announced that he had been promoted to a senior position. Mr Rahman rapidly acquired a reputation for being a "hatchet man" for enforcing party discipline. Mr. Rahman appears to prefer working behind the scenes. His private office "Hawa Bhavan" was widely viewed by political opponent Awami League as the driver of the country's mismanagement and corruption during 2001 to 2006 while his mother Khaleda Zia was the Prime Minister. He rarely speaks to the press, and is renowned for his reticence in the few media interviews he has given.

Rahman's Arrest and Aftermath

Corruption Charges

After the BNP led four party alliance formed the cabinet in 2001, allegations of corruption by Tareq Rahman began to appear in the media. Bangladesh Awami League in almost all of its political statements on corruption has indicated that Rahman's office, Hawa Bhaban, is regulating a parallel government inside the main one. In the wake of high inflation, it was alleged that Rahman was profiting from corrupt surcharges on rice, compressed natural gas, and other commodities.

Defenders of Rahman, in the BNP and elsewhere, claim that the corruption allegations against him were baseless and politically motivated.

Arrest

Under the present care taker government on March 7, 2007, Tareq Rahman was arrested by law enforcing Joint Forces as a part of chain arrests of politicians. He was charged with extortion and corruptions. He initially denied the charges. But the government found or explored the legal ground against him after the arrested BNP political leader and former state minister for home affairs Lutfozzaman Babar on 29 May, 2007 told the investigators that he worked as a media between Tareq Rahman and other people interested to bribe him and Tareq. Government claimed at the court that they've got a witness of Tareq's bribery act. But the trial has not started for these charges yet.

Confusion Over Truthfulness of Charges

As of Tareq Rahman during his party BNP's being in the power has been presented as the one to be in the driving seat of overall financial corrupts of the country; his obscure trial, torture and overall inability of plaintiffs to prove him has a corrupt, gave birth of great deal of confusions among people as it has been a question that how far the media allegation against him were true. A group of journalists under an idea conceptualized by the Daily Prothom Alo have always kept bashing Tareq Rahman and his official party office 'Hawa Bhaban' at Banani, Dhaka and relating all possible corruption allegations with these names. The stance of Prothom Alo can be clarified if the reader browse through their page, which have it's sample edition with the news headlines of Tareq Rahman's corruption allegation along with other charges against his family, although none of the charges 'at row' has been able to be proven anyhow. Above fifteen months long trial of Tareq Rahman which has not been able to prove him as a corrupt in any single charge, have urged those who kept bashing him to lose the momentum. The gradual fall of Prothom Alo circulation indicates to be a result of their irrational claim once.

Torture on Rahman Inside Custody

A huge contrast between Tareq's physique while being arrested on 7 March, 2007 and months later raised question of human rights abuse on him against the government. After some months of his arrest, Tareq lost his ability to walk on himself and lost ability to stand without help. Some days later his condition deteriorated and jail officials confirmed that Tareq was facing difficulties to make a slightly physical move. Members of his medical board stated that the deterioration of his physique seems to be result of falling upon a hard surface from a respectable altitude and being hit by something hard. The thing was clear that Tareq was being tortured inside custody all along. The court initially rejected his lawyers' appeal to keep him away of remand. As a result, weeks later he was seen to attend the trial by an ambulance, from where he was completely unable to get off or to be taken to the court room. This time the court seemed to be taking his torture allegations seriously and reject government's appeal to have him remanded. He was kept in BSMMU where his doctors were constantly admitting about brutal torture over him. Later, a chain of medical tests ratified the fear that doctors did earlier. The X-ray reports showed that three of 24 vertebras of his vertebral column have been broken and completely shattered. His lawyer Barrister Rafiqul Islam Mia debated [http://xanthis.wordpress.com/2008/06/11/weve-gone-numb/] at the court saying, "The arrest of my client was made public and people saw the photographs of him walking on himself. My client is young and what could have happened to him that within months he will be unable to walk? What could have happen to him that his vertebral bones will be shattered?"

Freed on Bail

On August 30, 2008, Tareq Rahman's release efforts got motion following his bail at five charges at a row. On September 3, 2008 the announcement of his release was made by the Deputy Inspector General of Prison Maj. Shamsul Haider Siddiqui, who was greeted, cheered and congratulated by surrounding BNP supporters immediately after he made the announcement. Tareq's hospital was surrounded by some thousands of BNP supporters and activists and his release sparkled joy among them. After Tareq waved from his hospital cabin window, many supporters went emotional with tears. On that day, some leaders who earlier opposed the leadership of Khaleda Zia on BNP, came to BSMMU to greet Tarique, but became heckled and chased by party activists.

Overseas Treatment and Speculated Break in Politics

Following the release of Tareq Rahman's mother Begum Khaleda Zia on September 11, 2008, Tareq Rahman was set to fly for London, United Kingdom due to overseas treatment. On the first working hour after Begum Zia took office at 28/1, New Paltan after her release, she stated to journalists that she has learnt from Tareq's physicians that his physique presently is not supportable for him to stay active in politics. She stated that her son his gravely ill and he will stay out of politics for few days if it helps him to recover. Following this statement, Tareq Rahman has been released from the post of Senior Joint Secretary General of Bangladesh Nationalist Party.

On September 11, 2008, Tareq Rahman along with his wife Dr. Zubaida Rahman, daughter Zaima Rahman and some other relatives and companions, have left Dhaka Zia International Airport for United Kingdom by an Emirates Airline flight. He possibly will have to go to Germany and United States for further treatment.

References

* [http://xanthis.wordpress.com/2008/06/11/weve-gone-numb/]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6430063.stm]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6446065.stm]
* [http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/01/10/news0777.htm]
* [http://www.newagebd.com/2007/sep/04/front.html]