Zaima Rahman

Zaima Zarnaz Rahman^[a] (born 26 October 1995),^[1][2] better known as Zaima Rahman, is a Bangladeshi barrister, and the only daughter of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairperson Tarique Rahman.^[3][4] She is the granddaughter of former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and former President Ziaur Rahman.^[5]

Zaima Rahman
জাইমা রহমান
Zaima Rahman after passing her bar exam in 2019
Born	Zaima Zarnaz Rahman (1995-10-26) 26 October 1995 (age 29) Dhaka, Bangladesh
Citizenship	Bangladesh
Alma mater	International School Dhaka Marymount International School London Queen Mary University of London
Occupation	Barrister • Politician
Political party	Bangladesh Nationalist Party
Parent(s)	Tarique Rahman (father) Zubaida Rahman (mother)
Relatives	Khaleda Zia (paternal grandmother) Ziaur Rahman (paternal grandfather) Mahbub Ali Khan (maternal grandfather) Arafat Rahman (uncle) Irene Khan (aunt)
Family	Majumder-Zia family

Early life and education

Zaima Rahman was born on 26 October 1995, at Holy Family Hospital in Dhaka as the only daughter of Tarique and Zubaida Rahman.^[1] She grew up at her grandmother's Dhaka Cantonment residence, before eventually moving to London after her father was arrested and released from bail in 2008.^[6][3]

She was a student at the International School Dhaka (ISD), while she was in Dhaka. After moving to London, she completed her O and A levels from Marymount International School London.^[1] Zaima obtained a law degree from Queen Mary University of London and later received her Bar-at-Law certification from Lincoln's Inn in 2019.^[7][3]

She first received media attention when she accompanied her grandmother, Khaleda Zia, to the voting centre in the 2001 Bangladeshi national elections, where her grandmother's party would win a landslide victory.^[8][9]

Career

After the July Revolution, she took a more prominent role and frequently represented her father at various events. She attended the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington D.C on behalf of her father.^[10] She was part of a BNP delegation which included Mirza Fakhrul and Amir Khasru.^[10] During that visit, Zaima met with former US Governor and former Executive Director of the World Food Program David Beasley, former Assistant Secretary of State at the US Department of State Robert A. Destro, and Rebekah Wagner, head of the US Women's Fellowship Foundation.^[11][12]