Voting ends in crucial Bangladesh polls amid sporadic violence, counting begins

Bangladesh on Thursday voted in crucial general elections marked by sporadic violence and sharp political contestation, with millions casting ballots to choose a new government to replace the interim administration installed after the fall of the Awami League regime in August 2024.

Polling for the 13th parliamentary elections began at 7.30 am local time in 299 of the country’s 300 constituencies and continued until 4:30 pm, with voters inside polling stations allowed to complete voting after the deadline. The election in one constituency was cancelled following the death of a candidate. Alongside the parliamentary vote, citizens participated in a referendum on an extensive 84-point reform package.

Nearly 127 million registered voters were eligible to cast ballots across 42,779 polling centres nationwide. Election Commission officials reported about 48 per cent turnout by mid-afternoon. Counting of votes began in several areas as polling ended. The contest was widely viewed as a direct fight between the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and former ally Jamaat-e-Islami, after the Awami League — led by ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina — was disbanded and barred from contesting by the interim government headed by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.

Senior leaders of the main contenders cast their votes early in the day. BNP chairman Tarique Rahman said his party would accept the results provided the election was free and impartial, calling such a process the foundation for a democratic beginning. Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman similarly said his alliance would honour the outcome if the process remained fair and transparent.

Security arrangements were extensive, with close to one million personnel deployed nationwide — the largest mobilisation in the country’s electoral history. Armoured vehicles, rapid-response units, drones and body-worn cameras were used in sensitive areas, while more than 55,000 domestic observers and nearly 400 international monitors oversaw the process.

Despite the precautions, violence and irregularities were reported in several places. Three people, including a teenage girl, were injured in a hand-bomb blast at a polling centre in Gopalganj, though voting resumed soon afterwards.

Explosions outside another centre in Munshiganj briefly halted polling, and a BNP leader died during arguments with Jamaat activists outside a centre in Khulna, with the rival sides disputing the cause. Authorities also arrested suspects over alleged distribution of ballot photocopies and detained a Jamaat leader in Dhaka over vote-buying allegations. Reports from Sylhet described scuffles between activists following accusations of ballot stamping.

While polling proceeded, Hasina — now in India following her removal from office — denounced the election as illegitimate. She called the process “a well-planned farce” conducted without meaningful participation and demanded fresh polls under a neutral caretaker administration. In a statement, she alleged widespread intimidation of supporters, seizure of polling centres, vote-buying and ballot manipulation, and claimed turnout was negligible in many locations. She also raised concerns over irregularities in voter rolls.

The Awami League echoed the criticism, urging cancellation of what it termed an unconstitutional vote and calling for the release of political detainees, restoration of the party’s activities and resignation of the interim government. The party has been barred from political activity since last year, when authorities imposed restrictions following the mass uprising that toppled it from power and suspended its registration pending tribunal proceedings.

The interim administration has defended the election as a necessary step in restoring democratic governance, with Yunus pledging to hand over authority promptly to the incoming government once results are declared.

With 1,755 candidates from 50 parties and hundreds of independents contesting, the outcome is expected to reshape Bangladesh’s political landscape after months of upheaval.

With PTI inputs