Ataur Rahman //

A wait of more than seven and a half years. May the waiting never end. For a person, the most dear mother in the world; waiting for her for so long…can’t imagine! Finally, Tarique Rahman got the touch of his mother. This is a different touch. A different kind of union between mother and son. A heavenly feeling. Which cannot be expressed in any language, rhythm or line.

This emotion is really not worth expressing in words. How have these seven and a half years passed between the two. Khaleda Zia hugged her son close to her. If she had been able to move, she would have hugged him while standing. She pulled Tarique Rahman to her chest while sitting in a wheelchair, which was her only means of mobility. Just as the dry land of Chaitra regains its vitality in the first rain of the monsoon; surely Tarique Rahman’s mind is in the same state today. After so many days, a wave of happiness is flowing in the heart after receiving the mother’s touch. Those who witness the auspicious moment of mother-son reunion have tears in their eyes without realizing it. These are tears of joy. Tarique Rahman’s wife Dr. Zobaidar Rahman also became emotional. She is the living diary of Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman’s life struggle.

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia arrived at Heathrow International Airport in London at 9 am local time on Wednesday (3 pm Bangladesh time) for treatment. Her son, BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, and his wife Zobaidar Rahman were already waiting there.

Khaleda Zia arrived in London in a special air ambulance provided by the Emir of Qatar. Acting High Commissioner of Bangladesh Hazrat Ali Khan greeted the former Prime Minister with flowers at the terminal.

Then daughter-in-law Dr. Zobaidar Rahman touched Khaleda Zia’s feet and greeted her. The mother-in-law and son-in-law exchanged views for some time. Then Tarique Rahman came to his mother’s wheelchair and hugged her. An emotional atmosphere was created there. Dr. Jobaida Rahman stood next to her and enjoyed the moment of mother-son reunion.

Syed Shamila Rahman Sinthi, wife of her younger son, the late Arafat Rahman Koko, went to London with Khaleda Zia. Some party leaders and activists were with her two daughters-in-law and son at the time. Khaleda Zia’s personal physician was Dr. AZM Zahid Hossain, a member of the party’s standing committee.

The sword fell on the Zia family during the 2007-08 military-controlled caretaker government. Like Khaleda Zia, her eldest son Tarique Rahman was also arrested. He was tortured in prison and his ribs were broken. After his release, he went to London with his family and could not return to the country. In the meantime, Tarique Rahman had to seek political asylum in the UK due to the expiration of his passport. Even during difficult times like the death of his younger brother Arafat Rahman Koko and his mother’s imprisonment, he could not return home. How many other politicians are victims of such a twist of fate! Who did not get the opportunity to see the body of his beloved younger brother – he was deprived of the opportunity to touch his grave.

Tarique Rahman only had the opportunity to touch his mother when Khaleda Zia went to London. The last time that opportunity was in July 2017. At that time, he drove his mother home. Today, Tarique Rahman drove his mother from Heathrow Airport to the London clinic. Zubaida Rahman was in the front seat of the black jeep. Khaleda Zia and Sinthi were in the back seat.

This time, when Khaleda Zia was taken off the plane and taken to the terminal in a wheelchair, Tarique stopped in front of her. He knelt down and hugged his mother. UK BNP President MA Malek, who witnessed this scene, said, ‘It is like a different touch, a different kind of moment that cannot be explained in words. Only those who have not had the touch of a mother for a long time will understand its appeal.’

In the life of a politician over eighty, her loved ones were not allowed to come close to her. She has been locked up in a dark prison cell for years. She has fallen ill repeatedly; she has not even been given treatment. Her children, sons-in-law and granddaughters have been kept thousands of kilometers away. They have not been allowed to come close to her. One has to wonder if there is another female politician in the world who has been oppressed like Khaleda Zia. She lost her husband at a young age. She has gained the title of an uncompromising leader by protesting and struggling on the streets from a housewife. Although the military-controlled government repeatedly pressured her to leave the country, she did not think about the people and the party leaders and activists. However, despite repeatedly requesting to go abroad for medical treatment in the evening of her life, she did not get that right for a long time. The BNP leader’s long struggle for democracy will be written in golden letters in the history of the world.

On February 8, 2018, Khaleda Zia was sentenced to prison in a corruption case. On the same day, Tareq was given the responsibility of the acting chairman of the party in a meeting of the BNP standing committee. After a long imprisonment, the Awami League government temporarily released Khaleda Zia in 2020 by executive order. But due to two conditions, she was practically imprisoned in her home and hospital life. Despite repeated requests for permission to go abroad for treatment, the Awami League government did not respond.

This time, Khaleda Zia’s trip to London for treatment has created a different atmosphere in the political arena. It cannot be explained how much Khaleda Zia is needed in Bangladesh’s democratic journey after the fall of Hasina. Everyone from politicians to ordinary people have realized that Khaleda Zia’s presence, participation and leadership are indispensable for institutionalizing democracy in Bangladesh.

On January 3, 1982, Khaleda Zia entered politics from a housewife with primary membership in the party. In 1983, he became the senior vice chairman, on January 12, 1984, the acting chairman of BNP, and on May 1 of the same year, he assumed the responsibility of chairperson. Since then, he continued the anti-Ershad movement for 9 years, adhering to the policy of ‘no compromise with tyranny’. He did not participate in the 1986 election under Ershad. Khaleda Zia became known as an uncompromising leader because she did not participate in that election. BNP won the 1991 election and formed the government. Khaleda Zia became the country’s first female prime minister.

BNP came to power again in the February 15, 1996 election. They could not last long. They had to hand over power to the caretaker government and step down. The Awami League won the next election and formed the government. Then BNP came to power again in 2001. On October 28, 2006, the party handed over power to the caretaker government. When the Awami League boycotted the January 22, 2007 election, a complex situation arose. A nationwide movement began. As a result, the 11/1 government led by Fakhruddin Ahmed emerged. Khaleda Zia and her family were sent to jail for corruption. Later, she was released on bail. Her two sons had to go abroad. The eldest son, Tarique Rahman, has not yet returned to the country. Another son, Arafat Rahman Koko, died abroad.

80-year-old Khaleda Zia is a politician who has been repeatedly harassed for her politics and her support for democracy. She was expelled from her home, where her husband’s memory is buried. She served her last years in prison. She did not even receive proper medical care. At an age when people spend time with their children and relatives, she has to spend time alone. Her sons, daughters-in-law, and granddaughters have to live thousands of kilometers away. They are not allowed to come to the country. Khaleda Zia’s son, Tarique Rahman, whose father, Ziaur Rahman, fought in the front lines for an independent country and gave his life for the country, is not allowed to come to the country today. Tarique Rahman, whose father played a role in creating 56,000 square miles of land, has no place to hang his head in an independent country.

The party’s leaders and activists hope that Khaleda Zia will return to the new Bangladesh with her son Tarique Rahman.

Author: Journalist and writer.