Bangladesh election result. (Reuters)
Jagran News, New Delhi. Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won a clear majority in the 13th parliamentary elections held on Thursday in Bangladesh.
Reuters quoted a local TV as saying that the BNP had won 151 seats in the 300-member parliament while its candidates were leading in several other seats. BNP President and PM candidate Tariq Rehman, son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, has won the elections from both the seats.
On the other hand, according to PTI, BNP is heading towards a bumper victory in the race for power in Bangladesh. In the elections held for 299 seats, its candidates are leading in more than 175 seats.
This is the first major election to restore democratic order in the country after the fall of Sheikh Hasina government in August 2024. The voting process continued from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm at 42,779 centres.
Tariq Rehman won on two seats
1755 candidates from 50 political parties and 273 independent candidates are trying their luck in this election field. BNP president and son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Tariq Rehman has won from Dhaka-17 and Bogura-6 constituencies. Rehman is also a candidate for the post of PM.
Jamaat-e-Islami president Shafiqur Rehman is leading on one seat from the capital, while Jamaat general secretary Miyan Golam Porwar lost to his rival BNP's Ali Asghar Labi in the south-western Khulna constituency.
All results likely to come by Friday morning
Election Commission officials said that all the results are likely to be declared by Friday morning. On the other hand, according to PTI, the counting of votes started on Thursday immediately after the voting for the 13th parliamentary elections and an important constitutional referendum. BNP is headed for a large majority in preliminary results according to election officials and media reports.
BNP ahead in more than 175 seats
In the elections held for 299 seats, its candidates are leading in more than 175 seats, while the candidates of its former ally and now rival party Jamaat-e-Islami are leading in only 30 seats. The election was canceled due to the death of a candidate in one constituency.
Meanwhile, according to Reuters, BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khasru Mahmood Chowdhury said, "Winning two-thirds of the seats is called a bumper victory, I think we will cross the limit of 200 seats." However, this is the first election in Bangladesh in many decades in which there is no prominent woman leader.
While ousted PM Sheikh Hasina is banned from contesting elections, her arch rival former PM Khaleda Zia died on December 30 after a prolonged illness. These two women dominated the country's politics for almost four decades.
Voting percentage and voter participation
According to Akhtar Ahmed, Senior Secretary of the Election Commission, till 2 pm the voting was recorded at 47.91 percent. About 12.7 crore registered voters took part in this historic election. It is noteworthy that this time along with the elections, a referendum has also been conducted on an 84-point reform package, which will decide the future constitutional direction of the country.
With Sheikh Hasina's party Awami League out of the elections, the main contest is between the BNP and the Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance. News of incidents of violence were reported from many parts of the country. During the elections, reports of violence also came from many parts of the country.
Three people, including a 13-year-old girl, were injured in a bomb attack at a polling booth in Gopalganj. Meanwhile, a local BNP leader was killed in a clash between Jamaat-e-Islami and BNP workers in Khulna. Voting was disrupted for some time in Munshiganj also due to bomb blasts.
Awami League's 'boat' symbol not on the ballot paper for the first time in 30 years
For the first time in 30 years in Bangladesh, 'Boat', the election symbol of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League, is not on the ballot. These are the first elections since Hasina was ousted from power following widespread nationwide protests in August 2024. The interim government had banned all party activities of the Awami League on May 12 last year and soon after, the Election Commission had suspended the party's registration.
The Awami League, one of the country's oldest political parties, has boycotted parliamentary elections twice in the past. However, this time it is unable to participate at all, as its registration is still suspended.
Ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said, "The election conducted without the participation of Awami League is fake. It is a well-planned farce created by murderer-fascist Muhammad Yunus who seized power illegally and unconstitutionally."
The farce began on the evening of 11 February with capture of polling stations, firing, vote buying, distribution of money, stamping of ballot papers and signing of result booklets by agents. There is a need to restore democratic rights and constitutional order in the country.
Muhammad Yunus, chief advisor to the interim government, said, "This election is a moment of national pride and renewal. Today is the birthday of the new Bangladesh. The people have rejected the past. No matter how terrible the past may have been, we have left it behind completely. From today onwards we have got the opportunity to build a new Bangladesh."
Tariq Rahman, BNP president, said, "The people of Bangladesh have been waiting for this day for more than a decade. If we form the government, we will give priority to improving law and order in the country so that people feel safe. Today can be the beginning of democracy in the country."
Shafiqur Rehman, Jamaat-e-Islami president said "We want results coming from a fair process. If the voting is free and fair, we will accept the results. Others will also have to accept it. This is the beauty of democracy. This is what we want."
Also read- Bangladesh elections: Tariq Rahman's BNP leads on 175 seats, Jamaat leads on 30
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