CA Yunus holds 90-minute meeting with BNP leader Tarique in London

Dhaka: Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has held a one-and-a-half-hour meeting with the BNP’s Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman in London.

The meeting took place at The Dorchester hotel on Park Lane from 2pm Bangladesh time on Friday, according to the Chief Advisor’s Office (CAO).

Following the meeting, Tarique left the hotel at 3:40pm. Before getting into his car, he waved and greeted party leaders and activists lining the street outside the hotel.

Prior to the one-on-one meeting, a courtesy call took place between Yunus and Tarique in the presence of BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Tarique’s International Affairs Advisor Humayun Kabir, as well as the Chief Advisor’s Security Advisor Khalilur Rahman and Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.

While exchanging pleasantries, Tarique conveyed the greetings of his mother, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, to the chief advisor.

Tarique arrived at the hotel by car at 1:50pm, where he was welcomed by officials from the CAO.

The meeting between Tarique and Yunus had piqued public interest in Bangladesh. The topic has been widely discussed in political circles, restaurants, television talk shows, newspapers, and across social media platforms.

This was Tarique's first private meeting with the head of government of any country since he went to London for medical treatment in September 2008.

For the past few months, top BNP leaders have been demanding parliamentary elections by December. The party's de facto leader Tarique has reiterated the demand during several virtual addresses at rallies.

In his address to the nation before Eid-ul-Azha, Yunus announced that the general elections would be held sometime in the first week of April, leaving BNP leaders and activists disappointed and displeased.