1946
Born on 15 August in Jalpaiguri. Khaleda Zia was the third among three daughters and two sons of Iskandar Majumdar and Begum Taiyaba Majumdar.
1951
She began her school life at the missionary school St Joseph’s Convent in Dinajpur.
1960
On 5 August, she married then army captain Ziaur Rahman.
1965
Her first child, Tareque Rahman, was born on 20 November. Arafat Rahman was born on 12 August 1970.
1971
When the Liberation War began, Khaleda Zia went into hiding with her two children. She was in Chattogram. At one stage, she was forced to come to Dhaka. On 2 July, Pakistani army personnel detained Khaleda Zia along with her two sons from a house in Siddheswari, Dhaka. She remained detained at Dhaka Cantonment until 15 December of that year.
1981
On 30 May, then President Ziaur Rahman was killed by a group of renegade army officers. Khaleda Zia lost her husband.
1982
At the call of party leaders and activists, Khaleda Zia accepted BNP membership in January.
1984
In April, she became the Acting Chairperson of the BNP, and in August she was elected Chairperson unopposed.
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1987
Khaleda Zia emerged as a street leader in the anti-Ershad movement. She launched the one-point movement of “Ershad Must Go”.
1991
In the fifth parliamentary election, Khaleda Zia contested five constituencies and won all of them. The BNP formed the government with Jamaat-e-Islami (18 seats) after securing 140 seats. Khaleda Zia became the country’s first female prime minister.
1996
In the one-sided sixth national parliamentary election (15 February), the BNP won 278 seats. Khaleda Zia again became prime minister. That government lasted for 12 days.
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2001
In the eighth national parliamentary election, the BNP-led four-party alliance won 216 seats. The BNP alone secured 193 seats. Khaleda Zia became prime minister for the third time.
2007
On 3 September, during the caretaker government period, Khaleda Zia was arrested on corruption charges. Her two children were also arrested. The BNP described the allegations against them as baseless.
2008
On 11 September, Khaleda Zia was released following a High Court order. Although the caretaker government wanted to send her abroad, she refused. On 29 December that year, the 4-party Alliance led by Khaleda Zia participated in the ninth parliamentary election and won 32 seats.
2010
On 13 November, the then Awami League government evicted Khaleda Zia from her residence inside Dhaka Cantonment. She had lived in that house for 28 years.
2014
The 18-party Alliance led by Khaleda Zia boycotted the one-sided and controversial tenth parliamentary election held on 5 January.
2015
On 24 January, Khaleda Zia lost her younger son Arafat Rahman. He died of a heart attack while in Malaysia.
2018
On 8 February, during the Awami League government’s tenure, Khaleda Zia was sentenced to five years in prison in the Zia Orphanage Trust case (later acquitted). She was sent to jail. In the eleventh parliamentary election held on 30 December, the BNP participated. However, in that election—widely referred to as the “night-time vote”—the BNP won only seven seats.
2020
On 25 March, Khaleda Zia’s sentence was suspended by an executive order of the government. She returned home from hospital. However, her political activities remained banned.
2024
Following the July mass uprising, the Awami League government was ousted on 5 August. On 6 August, Khaleda Zia was released through an executive order.
2025
On 7 January, Khaleda Zia travelled to the United Kingdom for medical treatment and returned on 6 May.
On 15 January, she was acquitted in the Zia Orphanage Trust case.
On 23 November, she was admitted to Evercare Hospital in the capital due to illness.
On 25 December, Khaleda Zia’s elder son and BNP Acting Chairman Tareque Rahman returned to the country from the United Kingdom after 17 years.
On 30 December, Khaleda Zia died while undergoing treatment. Thus ended a illustrious political life.
Sources: ‘Begum Khaleda Zia: Jibon O Songram’ (Mahfuz Ullah), ‘Khaleda’ (Mahfuddin Ahmed), ‘Bangladesher Nirbachoni Byabostha O Folafol’ (compiled by Nesar Amin), Khaleda Zia’s affidavits, and BNP website and media cell.