Following Bangladesh's first post-Hasina election? Key points here
India Today
Bangladesh's 127 million people are voting in its first election without Sheikh Hasina or the Awami League on the ballot in over 15 years. Here's a detailed look at what is at stake, who is in the fray, and why the BNP-Jamaat contest could redefine Bangladesh.
Today, February 12, is a big day for Bangladesh. That's because 127 million people of Bangladesh are electing their first government after an anti-quota agitation supported by Islamists dethroned PM Sheikh Hasina in August 2024. People of Bangladesh, now seeking a "notun byabostha" (a new system)" are voting for the next government and also for a simultaneous referendum for the implementation of the July Charter.
With nearly 44% of the 127 million voters aged between 18 and 37, and about five million casting their vote for the first time, this post-Hasina election carries a major significance. After youth-led protests helped trigger the political unrest in Bangladesh, young voters are now positioned to shape the outcome through the ballot.
The two main alliances contesting the polls are led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI).
The BNP's chief is Tarique Rahman, the son of former PM Khaleda Zia who died in December 2025. The Jamaat-e-Islami is led by Shafiqur Rahman and is at the head of an 11-party alliance, which includes the National Citizen Party (NCP) formed by anti-Hasina leaders. Shafiqur Rahman, during the Hasina rule, was booked for terrorism and sabotage. He was locked up, and the Islamist Jamaat was banned until the Muhammad Yunus administration lifted the ban.
The polls in Bangladesh are being held under the shadow of alleged fraud, violence, a shortage of police personnel, and a deteriorating law-and-order situation.
Earlier, the BNP's Tarique Rahman, concerned over security of polling booths, had asked his supporters to be present even before the Fajr namaz (dawn prayers). On Monday, miscreants set fire to four polling booths in the Netrokona district. A day ago, the Bangladesh Army arrested a terrorist in the capital Dhaka with three foreign pistols, 13 locally made weapons, and various types of ammunition. Later on Monday night, a Hindu businessman was stabbed to death inside his shop in Bangladesh's Mymensingh district.
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