Tarique Rahman named among world’s 500 most influential Muslims
Photo: Prime Minister Tarique Rahman
Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has been named among the world’s 500 most influential Muslim personalities. His name has been included for the first time in the 2027 edition of The Muslim 500: The World’s 500 Most Influential Muslims, published by the Jordan-based Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (RISSC).
Two other Bangladeshis, human rights activists Dr Hamida Hossain and Razia Sultana, have also been included in the list.
Tarique Rahman has been placed in the “Political” category. In the national parliamentary election held on February 12, 2026, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by him, secured a two-thirds majority, bringing the party back to power.
Following the end of the interim government’s tenure, Tarique Rahman assumed office as prime minister. His inclusion in the list recognizes his role in leading the country’s political and administrative affairs as head of the new government.
Photo: Dr. Hamida Hossain and Razia Sultana
The other two Bangladeshis included in the list have been placed in the “Social Issues” category.
One of them is Dr. Hamida Hossain, a prominent human rights activist and researcher. She is one of the founders of Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK). She has regularly featured on the list in recognition of her longstanding work to promote women’s rights and democratic values.
The other is Razia Sultana, a lawyer and human rights activist. She has gained international recognition for her work on the Rohingya crisis and for protecting the rights of refugee women and children.
In the previous 2026 edition, Bangladesh’s then interim government Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus ranked 50th among the world’s top 50 most influential Muslim personalities. However, his name is absent from the 2027 edition.
According to the publication, the list is compiled by assessing individuals’ ability to exert political, ideological, cultural and financial influence over the world’s approximately 2.2 billion Muslims.
Only the top 50 personalities are ranked from 1 to 50. The remaining 450 individuals are included without a specific ranking across 13 categories, including politics, religious affairs, social issues, business, science and culture.
All three Bangladeshis featured in the 2027 edition are among these 450 unranked individuals.
Source: The Muslim 500 (Adapted)
