Tarique Rahman in Barishal after two decades

Tarique Rahman arrived in the coastal city by helicopter from Dhaka on Wednesday, reaching the historic Bells Park ground at around 12:25pm.

As he took to the stage, thousands of party leaders, activists and supporters welcomed him with sustained applause, chanting slogans and waving party flags.

Standing on the stage, Tarique acknowledged the crowd by waving back, marking a rare and symbolically significant appearance in a region long viewed as politically important but electorally competitive.

The Barishal rally is part of a wider election campaign, with the BNP chief expected to travel next to Faridpur to address another public meeting.

Party leaders say the programme is aimed at energising grassroots supporters ahead of the upcoming national election.

At the Barishal gathering, the BNP chairman will formally introduce candidates from all 21 parliamentary constituencies in the Barishal division, including nominees from BNP and its alliance partners.

In Barishal district, the candidates are Zahir Uddin Swapan (Barishal-1), Sardar Sarfuddin Ahmed (Barishal-2), Zainul Abedin (Barishal-3), Md Rajib Ahsan (Barishal-4), Md Mujibur Rahman Sarwar (Barishal-5) and Abul Hossain Khan (Barishal-6).

For Jhalokathi, Rafiqul Islam Jamal is contesting Jhalokathi-1, while Israt Sultana Elen Bhutto has been named for Jhalokathi-2. In Barguna, Md Nazrul Islam Molla will contest Barguna-1 and Md Nurul Islam Barguna-2, reports UNB. 

The Patuakhali candidates include Altaf Hossain Chowdhury (Patuakhali-1), Md Shahidul Alam Talukdar (Patuakhali-2), Md Nurul Haque (Patuakhali-3) and ABM Mosharraf Hossain (Patuakhali-4).

In Pirojpur, the party has nominated Alamgir Hossain (Pirojpur-1), Ahmed Sohel Manzur (Pirojpur-2) and Md Ruhul Amin Dulal (Pirojpur-3).

For Bhola, Andaleeve Rahman has been selected for Bhola-1, Md Hafiz Ibrahim for Bhola-2, Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram for Bhola-3 and Mohammad Nurul Islam for Bhola-4.