Bangladesh's high-stakes general election closed Thursday evening, marking the country's first national vote since the 2024 uprising that led to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ouster. As counting began, allegations of voter bribery and irregularities cast a shadow over what is widely seen as a defining contest for the country's political future.
The election is largely being framed as a direct contest between Tarique Rahman's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and an 11-party alliance led by the resurgent Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami under Shafiqur Rahman. With the Awami League disbanded after Hasina's fall, the political landscape has shifted dramatically.
'Cash For Votes'
A major controversy erupted on polling day after pamphlets allegedly circulated by Jamaat-e-Islami supporters promised voters 15,000 Bangladeshi taka in exchange for proof that they had voted for the party's "Dari Palla" (weighing scale) symbol.
The leaflet, accessed by NDTV, instructed voters to bring camera phones into polling booths and photograph their stamped ballots as evidence. It also claimed that if all members of a family voted for Jamaat, their afterlife would be "free of sin" and grant "salvation from grave punishment."
The document further stated that party workers had collected voter ID details and mobile numbers linked to bKash, Bangladesh's leading mobile financial service, and that payments would be transferred after results were declared. Voters were also allegedly told to remain near polling centres after casting ballots and to keep the leaflet "completely secret."
Jamaat has not formally responded to the bribery allegations. Party chief Shafiqur Rahman, who cast his vote in Dhaka, instead alleged attempts at vote-rigging against his supporters. In a Facebook post, he claimed polling agents were being attacked and that there were efforts to capture polling stations in some areas. He urged citizens to ignore what he described as a "night of rumours."
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Bangladesh's mainstream media reported scattered clashes, allegations of pre-poll vote stuffing and the distribution of photocopied ballots in some constituencies.
Election Observation
Joint forces of the army and police were deployed, with several activists reportedly detained. Despite the tensions, international observers described the day as significant. European Union Election Observation Mission chief Ivars Ijabs, after visiting polling stations in Dhaka, called it "a big day for Bangladesh's democracy," expressing hope for a "participatory, credible and trusted" outcome.
Nearly 400 international observers and around 200 foreign journalists monitored proceedings across the country.
Count Down
Voting was held in 299 of 300 constituencies from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm local time. About 127 million citizens were registered to vote, including nearly five million first-time voters. Turnout stood at roughly 48% by mid-afternoon and was expected to rise.
The polls were conducted alongside a referendum on an 84-point reform package introduced by interim chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, who hailed the election as the beginning of a "new Bangladesh" and urged political actors to maintain democratic restraint after results are announced.
As counting continues, the outcome will determine not only the next government but also the direction of a country seeking stability after months of upheaval.
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