Hasina’s children free to join politics? Anyone can if people accept them, Tarique tells Reuters

Last Updated on February 7, 2026 5:57 pm

Anyone is free to engage in Bangladesh politics if they are accepted by the people, said BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman during an interview with Reuters.

Tarique made the remarks when asked whether former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s children could return from abroad and participate in politics.

“If someone is accepted by the people, if people welcome them, then anyone has the right to do politics,” he said.

The remark comes as the country prepares for a transition of power in the run-up to the 13th national polls on 12 February, in which Tarique is a leading prime ministerial contender.

Following the fall of the Awami League government amid a mass uprising on 5 August 2024, Hasina fled to India the same day and has remained there since.

Hasina’s Awami League is currently banned from contesting the election, while many senior leaders and members of her family were already abroad or left the country around the time of the government’s fall.

Her daughter, Saima Wazed Putul, is currently on indefinite leave from her role as the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia regional director after being placed on leave in July 2025 over allegations of fraud and corruption in Bangladesh.