BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman is expected to return to Bangladesh "immediately after" the announcement of the election schedule in the first week of December.

Top BNP figures had earlier indicated that Tarique would return by November.

However, Maj Gen (retd) Fazle Elahi Akbar, BNP chairperson's chief coordinator on defence and security issues, told The Daily Star today that his arrival will follow the election schedule announcement.

"Tarique Rahman will come to the country immediately after the election schedule is announced in early December," he said.

Fazle Elahi added that the BNP acting chairman faces a "security risk" and that the situation must be handled carefully.

"He will travel to different parts of the country while campaigning, as he was not in the country for quite a long time. Moreover, he is the chairman [acting] of the party. He will also participate in the polls," he said.

"Everyone will be eagerly waiting wherever he visits, and we expect that there will be a huge crowd wherever he goes," Fazle Elahi said, adding, "Where there is a huge crowd, there remains a security risk."

He noted that the party would need to manage the situation delicately to maintain security without distancing Tarique from supporters. "Of course the government has a responsibility in this regard. The government will come forward to ensure that security," he said.

Asked whether BNP has held any meeting with the government over the security for Tarique, Fazle Elahi said, "Once we know [exact date] his arrival, we will make a formal request to the government."

According to the party insiders, BNP has initiated the process of purchasing a bulletproof SUV for Tarique.

Regarding his accommodation, Fazle Elahi said the BNP acting chairman will stay at a duplex on Gulshan Avenue in the capital.

According to BNP leaders, the two-storey house -- next to Khaleda Zia's home "Feroza" -- has been fully renovated and decorated.

The house, built on 32 kathas of land and given to Khaleda by the government in 1981, is now being prepared for her elder son Tarique, party sources said.

After the assassination of president Ziaur Rahman on May 31, 1981, his wife Khaleda was allotted the Gulshan house. She retained control of the property for years, and after the interim government assumed office, it was officially registered in her name on June 5, when an adviser handed over the documents.

Tarique, 57, has been living in London since 2008. In 2009, he became BNP's senior vice chairman and gradually took on a key leadership role.

In 2018, after his mother, former prime minister Khaleda, was jailed, Tarique was made acting chairman and has since led the party from abroad, virtually attending meetings and rallies.

During the Awami League's tenure, he was convicted in absentia in five cases and faced around 100 lawsuits.

Following the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, all charges against him were dropped, and there are currently no pending cases at court.