Overview
- The BNP acting chairman landed in Dhaka on a Biman flight with his wife and daughter after a stop in Sylhet, where senior party leaders received him under tight security.
- Hundreds of thousands lined the route to a reception site as authorities imposed a double-layer security cordon, restricted access to the airport, and issued traffic and crowd-control orders.
- Higher courts withdrew or overturned past cases against Rahman, with Muhammad Yunus confirming the clearances, as an IRI survey points to the BNP leading a contest that excludes the Awami League and features Jamaat-e-Islami as a key rival.
- Party officials say Rahman will complete voter registration on December 27, nomination papers have been collected in Bogura for him and Khaleda Zia, and he is visiting his ailing mother at Evercare Hospital.
- The homecoming follows weeks of tension that included the shooting death of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi and a fatal crude bomb blast, while authorities reiterate plans to hold national elections on February 12.