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Published : 17 Feb 2026, 06:22 PM
Ariful Haque Chowdhury’s rise through Sylhet’s political ranks has been steep. Now, in his first term as a member of parliament, he has crossed into top tier of power -- securing a cabinet berth as the BNP returns to office after two decades.
He is among the 25 full ministers sworn into Tarique Rahman’s government.
A former ward councillor who built his career in the alleyways of Sylhet rather than the drawing rooms of Dhaka, Ariful has been rewarded with two heavyweight portfolios — labour and employment, and expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment— in his very first term as an MP.
Few first-timers receive such responsibility. Fewer still come from a purely grassroots background.
Speaking after receiving confirmation of his appointment, Ariful struck a conciliatory note.
“I will work with everyone,” he said.
“I want to repay, through performance, the trust the party has placed in a grassroots worker.”
In the election, Ariful won the Sylhet-4 constituency -- covering Companiganj, Gowainghat and Jaintiapur Upazilas -- securing 186,846 votes. His nearest rival, Jamaat-e-Islami’s Zainal Abedin, received 71,391 votes.
His elevation has generated enthusiasm within BNP ranks in Sylhet.
District BNP President Quiyum Choudhury said party leaders and activists were “delighted” by Ariful’s elevation from grassroots politics to the cabinet, expressing confidence that he would play a significant role in Sylhet’s development.
Ariful had initially sought the BNP nomination for the Sylhet-1 seat, covering the city corporation and Sadar Upazila. That ticket went to Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, an advisor to the BNP chair.
On the night of Nov 5, the party high command instructed Ariful to contest Sylhet-4.
He began campaigning two days later, and on Dec 4, the BNP formally announced his nomination.
An advisor to the BNP chairman, Ariful previously served on the party’s central executive committee and remains a member of the Sylhet district BNP.
He has held key organisational roles, including president of Sylhet city BNP and general secretary of the district unit.
Before entering mainstream BNP politics, he was active in Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, serving as president of MC College Chhatra Dal and general secretary of both the city and district units.
His political rise accelerated during the four-party alliance government, when he emerged as a trusted associate of the then Sylhet-1 MP and BNP finance and planning minister M Saifur Rahman.
Elected ward councillor in 2003, Ariful chaired Sylhet City Corporation’s Urban Development and Planning Committee and oversaw many Sylhet-centred development projects, earning a reputation as Saifur Rahman’s close aide.
Ariful became mayor in 2013, defeating the late Awami League leader Badar Uddin Ahmed Kamran.
In 2018, while Awami League candidates won four of five city elections, Sylhet remained with the BNP under Ariful’s leadership.
He did not contest the 2023 polls after the BNP boycotted elections under the then Awami League government, a decision that further strengthened his standing within the party.
The Sylhet-4 seat was previously held by Awami League’s Imran Ahmed, a seven-time MP who once led the same two ministries now entrusted to Ariful.
