BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Photo: PMO

DHAKA, Sept 3, 2026 (BSS) - The 19th ‘Jail-Free Day’ of BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is being observed today with the party recalling the period as one of the most difficult chapters of his political life.

Tarique Rahman was arrested on March 7, 2007 in a plot to fulfil political vendetta during the illegal 1/11 government. After being imprisoned for about 18 months without trial, he was released on bail on September 3, 2008.

In the early hours of March 7, 2007, the then BNP Senior Joint Secretary General, Tarique Rahman, was arrested from his Dhaka Cantonment residence and imprisoned. He was subjected to brutal torture while in prison.

After securing bail in all the false and politically motivated cases filed against him, he went to England in 2008 for better treatment. After living abroad for a long time, he returned to fascism-free Bangladesh on December 25, 2025.

Then, in the parliamentary elections held on February 12, 2026, the country’s people gave BNP the responsibility of running the state. After forming the government based on the people's mandate, BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman is currently running the country as the Prime Minister.