Bangladesh elections and aftermath

2026-02-18 - 20:53

THE first elections following the ouster of the Hasina regime in Bangladesh concluded with a stunning and decisive victory for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led alliance, which secured 216 of the 300 parliamentary seats. The result gives the alliance a comfortable majority and the authority to form the new government. The BNP has elected its Leader of the House, party chief Tarique Rahman, who has also been elected as Prime Minister. The scale of the victory amounts to a two-thirds supermajority, enabling the BNP to invoke Article 142 to amend the constitution if it chooses. Jamaat-e-Islami emerged as the runner-up with 76 seats, while independents and smaller parties together secured seven seats. An impressive 59 percent voter turnout in the 13th general election reflects strong public participation and political engagement. Simultaneously, Jamaat-e-Islami and its partners have emerged as a formidable opposition, ensuring a significant sway over future parliamentary debates. After three consecutive sham elections in 2014, 2018 and 2024, voters finally had the opportunity to make their voices heard through a fair and peaceful process. For Jamaat, alongside its allies — including the NCP, a party born out of the July Revolution — it secured a quarter of the 300 seats. This makes them a massive political force in the opposition. Bangladesh has a history of “two third majority” in its 55 years electoral history because in 10 of the 13 national elections the winning party has always walked away with a two thirds mandate. Simple majority has occurred in 1986, 1991 and June 1996 only. All credit to the present government of Bangladesh this was the fairest, peaceful, best administered and transparent elections in the history of the nation and the results have been graciously accepted by all stakeholders without any accusations of cheating or polls rigging. This election was held within living and fresh memory of the anti- Hasina protest movement and for the first time the complete absence of the Awami League party. The BNP very cleverly exploited the sentiments of the voters about the injustices they had to suffer during the last two decades and the imprisonment of thousands of the BNP workers and activists. It was for the first time that the BNP decided to part ways with its past political partner the Jamaat-i-Islami and also for the first time that the Jamaat became a formidable opposition for power in this election. It is also for the first time that the Jamaat has taken a quantum leap by winning 76 seats as in the past they never managed more than 18 seats so in fact they have improved more than four times. Jamaat has shown a prudent capacity for survival and adaptation. Over the decades, it has befriended fierce rivals to gain dividends: Joining the AL during the 1994-1996 protests, sharing power with the BNP in 2001 and now absorbing the student-led NCP. The JI is now in a comfortable role as the main opposition party and is capable of giving a tough time to the new government of the BNP for the next five years and it is also quite clear that the Awami League is not likely to make a quick comeback to the political arena. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Romanized as Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Dal, is a major political party in Bangladesh, founded on 1 September 1978 by President Ziaur Rahman with the aim of uniting the country under a nationalist ideology. Tarique Rahman (born 20 November 1965), also known natively as Tarique Zia, is the son of Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh’s first female Prime Minister. He has served as Chairman of the BNP and represented Bogra-6 and Dhaka-17 constituencies. The recent election victory has brought euphoria, but it also presents the party with the challenging task of delivering on its pledges while maintaining public trust. To succeed, the BNP must exercise humility and sincerity toward its voters, respect opposition voices, uphold traditions of dissent and ensure complete media freedom. Failure to responsibly manage its hard-earned two-thirds majority could provide an opening for Jamaat-e-Islami and other rightist forces. The election also marked a remarkable reversal of fortune for Tarique Rahman, whose father was a leading independence figure from 1977 to 1981 until his assassination. After being released from detention under a military-backed caretaker administration, Mr. Rahman left the country in 2008, citing medical treatment, before returning to take a central role in the BNP’s political resurgence. —The writer is Professor of History, based in Islamabad tariq.aqil@headstart.edu.pk.