Ayesha Mir

Muhammad Ibrahim

DHAKA: Bangladesh swore in its new prime minister on Tuesday amid heavy security and widespread celebrations, following a landslide election that marked the country&rsquo;s first national vote since the mass 2024 uprising that ended years of &quot;authoritarian rule.&quot; The capital, Dhaka, was placed under tight security throughout the day, with major roads repeatedly opened and closed to accommodate high-profile movements. Traffic across large parts of the city was severely disrupted, leaving commuters stranded for hours. Following the oath-taking ceremony, supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) poured onto the streets, chanting slogans and holding celebratory rallies. Crowds also gathered outside the parliament complex, lining the road beyond the main gate to witness the historic transition. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, whose five-year term begins immediately, was sworn in by President Mohammed Shahabuddin at a ceremony held at the South Plaza of the National Parliament. Rahman, 60, is the son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia and former president Ziaur Rahman. He is Bangladesh&rsquo;s first male prime minister in 35 years. Since the restoration of democracy in 1991, the office had alternated exclusively between his mother and her longtime rival Sheikh Hasina. Rahman returned to Bangladesh in December last year after 17 years in self-imposed exile in London, shortly before his mother&rsquo;s death. He has pledged to restore democratic institutions in the South Asian nation of around 170 million people. The BNP and its allies secured 212 seats in the 350-member parliament, giving the party a decisive majority. An opposition alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami won 77 seats, while smaller parties and independents filled the remainder. Of the 300 directly elected seats, voting was held in 299 constituencies. Seven women were elected directly in the 13th national election, six of them on the BNP ticket. An additional 50 seats are reserved for women and allocated proportionally among winning parties. Security, crowds and public mood Earlier in the day, the head of the Election Commission administered the oath of office separately to all newly elected lawmakers. The presence of multiple foreign delegations prompted extensive security arrangements, with checkpoints and police deployments across central Dhaka. Despite disruptions, the atmosphere around parliament was celebratory. BNP supporters waved party flags and described the day as the culmination of years of political struggle and disenfranchisement. Pakistan signals engagement Foreign dignitaries attending the ceremony included Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, an Indian delegation, and representatives from Nepal, Sri Lanka and other countries. Pakistan was represented by Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who said he was attending on behalf of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. &ldquo;I am here to represent the Prime Minister of Pakistan and the people of Pakistan at a very historic moment when Bangladesh is making a democratic transition and a new government is being sworn in,&rdquo; Iqbal told Pakistan TV Digital. &ldquo;Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would very much like to visit Bangladesh as early as possible,&rdquo; he added. Iqbal said Islamabad viewed the change in Dhaka as an opportunity to deepen bilateral ties, particularly in trade, investment and people-to-people engagement. &ldquo;There is tremendous opportunity to promote trade between Pakistan and Bangladesh,&rdquo; he said, noting that bilateral trade remains below $1 billion. &ldquo;We look forward to a new journey between Pakistan and Bangladesh, towards prosperity and stability, not only for our region but for our people.&rdquo; Cabinet takes shape A total of 25 full ministers and two state ministers were sworn in as part of Rahman&rsquo;s new cabinet, covering portfolios ranging from finance and home affairs to foreign policy, energy, climate change and social welfare. Key appointments include Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury to finance and planning, Salahuddin Ahmed to home affairs, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir to local government, and Khalilur Rahman, a technocrat, as foreign minister. The election was overseen by an interim administration led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, which took charge after Sheikh Hasina was toppled during the 2024 uprising. Hasina&rsquo;s Awami League party was barred from contesting the vote, and all its political activities were suspended during the transition. From exile in India, Hasina rejected the election as unfair. At home, she has been sentenced to death on charges of crimes against humanity related to hundreds of deaths during the unrest. The vote was largely peaceful and was deemed acceptable by international observers, restoring electoral legitimacy after years of disputed polls and political turmoil. With a strong parliamentary mandate, a newly sworn-in cabinet and public celebrations spilling into the streets, Bangladesh&rsquo;s new government begins its term under intense domestic expectations and renewed regional scrutiny.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairman Tarique Rahman (R) takes oath as prime minister during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Parliament building in Dhaka on February 17, 2026. (AFP)

Bangladesh

Tarique Rahman becomes 11th prime minister as Bangladesh swears in new government after landslide election, signaling democratic transition, regional engagement and renewed ties with neighbors, including Pakistan.

Bangladesh swears in new prime minister after landslide election

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Tarique Rahman is set to become Bangladesh&rsquo;s next prime minister after his Bangladesh Nationalist Party gained an outright majority with 209 seats in the recently-held 13th Jatiya Sangsad (parliamentary) elections. President Mohammed Shahabuddin will administer the oath to the new prime minister and cabinet members at the South Plaza of the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladeshs-incoming-government-signals-regional-reset-pushes-saarc-revival" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Jatiya Sangsad</a> on Tuesday, state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) reported. &ldquo;The Parliament Secretariat is set to hold the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/planning-minister-to-represent-pakistan-at-bangladesh-oathtaking-ceremony" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">oath-taking ceremony</a> of the new cabinet members at 4:00 p.m. tomorrow. Earlier, the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-vote-resets-power-balance-backs-reforms-after-years-of-upheaval" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Parliament Members</a> (MPs) will be sworn-in at 10:00 a.m at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Complex,&rdquo; Secretary of the Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat Kaniz Maula said, according to BSS. Oath-taking ceremonyThe Cabinet Division and the Parliament Secretariat have been making all-out preparations for the oath-taking ceremony since Saturday, she added. Breaking with a long-standing tradition, the swearing-in ceremony for the new government will be held at the South Plaza of the Parliament Complex rather than at Bangabhaban, the presidential residence.&nbsp; The cabinet secretary will conduct the oath-taking ceremony, BSS reported, quoting a Bangabhaban source familiar with the development.&nbsp; According to the rules, following the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected members of parliament, a meeting of the BNP Parliamentary Board will be held to elect its parliamentary leader, BSS reported, quoting a BNP source. Appointment of PM&nbsp;The leader of the house will then meet the president and inform him that the party holds an absolute majority in parliament, officially requesting appointment as the prime minister of Bangladesh. Next, the president will appoint the party leader as prime minister, who will then choose other members of the cabinet.&nbsp; President Shahabuddin, as the head of state, will administer the oath first to the prime minister, followed by the ministers, state ministers, and deputy ministers.&nbsp; Gazette publication&nbsp;According to the constitution, elected members are required to take an oath within three days of the gazette publication.&nbsp; On Friday night, the Election Commission published the gazette for 297 out of 299 parliamentary seats in the 13th parliamentary polls.&nbsp; In this election, the BNP secured an absolute majority by winning 209 seats.&nbsp;Their former ally, Jamaat-e-Islami, will be the main opposition party with 68 seats. Other parties and independent candidates have won the remaining seats.&nbsp;

Following the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected people's representatives, a meeting of the BNP Parliamentary Board will be held to elect its parliamentary leader. The leader of the house will meet the president and inform him that the party has an absolute majority in parliament, requesting appointment as prime minister. The president will then appoint the leader as prime minister, who will select the other cabinet members.

Bangladesh's newly-elected representatives to take oath today

DHAKA:&nbsp;The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Friday claimed a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-elections-2034-candidates-in-race-as-electioneering-ends-tuesday" style="color:#0073e6;">thumping win</a>&nbsp;in the first elections held since a deadly 2024 uprising, with leader Tarique Rahman poised to become prime minister. Final results are still to come, but the United States was swift to offer its congratulations to Rahman and the BNP for an &quot;historic victory&quot;, its embassy in Dhaka said. Rahman had told AFP two days before polling he was &quot;confident&quot; that his party &mdash; crushed during the 15 years of ousted premier Sheikh Hasina&#39;s autocratic rule &mdash; would regain power in the South Asian nation of 170 million people. &quot;This victory was expected. It is not surprising that the people of Bangladesh have placed their trust in a party... capable of realizing the dreams that our youth envisioned during the uprising,&quot; Salahuddin Ahmed, a leading BNP committee member, told AFP Friday. &quot;This is not a time for celebration, as we will face mounting challenges in building a country free from discrimination.&quot; At 8:00 am (0200 GMT), broadcasters projected that the BNP had pushed well past the 150-seat threshold to secure a clear majority in parliament &mdash; predicting they would win more than two-thirds of seats. The Jamuna television channel reported that the BNP had secured 212 seats. The coalition headed by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-religious-party-leader-eyes-power-after-decades-in-politics" style="color:#0073e6;">Jamaat-e-Islami</a>&nbsp;had won 70 seats, the station projected, a huge leap from its past results but far short of the outright win it had campaigned for. Somoy TV broadcast similar figures. Jamaat chief Shafiqur Rahman, 67, who mounted a disciplined grassroots campaign on a platform of justice and ending corruption, has not commented on the predicted results. The Election Commission has not released final results, suggesting it will have those ready by late Friday morning, for a total of the 299 constituencies of 300 in which voting took place. A further 50 seats in parliament reserved for women will be named from party lists. Senior BNP leader Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, in a party statement, claimed a &quot;sweeping victory,&quot; without giving figures, calling for followers to give thanks in prayer on Friday rather than celebrate on the streets. &quot;There will be no victory rally despite the BNP&#39;s sweeping victory,&quot; the statement said. &quot;We will hold special prayers at mosques after Jumma (Friday) prayers across the country.&quot; Peaceful polls&nbsp;Party workers spent the whole night in front of the BNP offices. &quot;We will join the nation-building effort led by Tarique Rahman,&quot; Md Fazlur Rahman, 45, told AFP. &quot;Over the last 17 years, we have suffered a lot, faced multiple politically motivated cases, and lost a factory I owned.&quot; Heavy deployments of security forces are posted countrywide, and UN experts warned ahead of the voting of &quot;growing intolerance, threats and attacks,&quot; and a &quot;tsunami of disinformation.&quot; Political clashes killed five people and injured more than 600 during campaigning, police records show. But polling day was largely peaceful, according to the Election Commission, which reported only &quot;a few minor disruptions.&quot; &#39;Ended the nightmare&#39;&nbsp;Interim leader Muhammad Yunus, who will step down once the new government takes power, has urged all sides to stay calm. &quot;We may have differences of opinion, but we must remain united in the greater national interest,&quot; he said. The 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner has led Bangladesh since Hasina&#39;s rule ended with her ouster in August 2024. His administration barred her Awami League party from contesting the polls. Yunus, after casting his vote, said the country had &quot;ended the nightmare and begun a new dream&quot;. Hasina, 78, sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity, issued a statement from hiding in India, where she called the vote an &quot;illegal and unconstitutional election.&quot; Yunus has championed a sweeping democratic reform charter to overhaul what he called a &quot;completely broken&quot; system of government and to prevent a return to one-party rule. Voters also took part in a referendum on the charter and whether to endorse its proposals for prime ministerial term limits, a new upper house of parliament, stronger presidential powers, and greater judicial independence. Television projections suggested the electorate had backed the charter.

The Election Commission has not released final results, suggesting it will have those ready by late Friday morning; counting continues for a total of the 299 constituencies of 300 in which voting took place; US embassy in Dhaka offers congratulations to Rahman, BNP for "historic victory."

Bangladesh's BNP claim 'sweeping' election win: report

Electoral officials sort ballots as counting starts at a polling station during Bangladesh's general election in Dhaka on February 12, 2026. Counting began on February 12 in Bangladesh's first election since a deadly 2024 uprising, with powerful political

Ballots are being hand-counted nationwide after polling closed peacefully, with nearly 48% turnout by afternoon and international observers monitoring credibility amid tight security.

Counting underway in first Bangladesh polls since deadly uprising

ISLAMABAD: Electioneering by contesting candidates in Bangladesh&rsquo;s 13th National Parliament (Jatiya Sangsad) Election and Referendum will conclude at 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, exactly 48 hours before polling begins, the country&#39;s state media reported, quoting the Election Commission. The campaign, which began on Jan. 22, will end in line with electoral rules requiring a mandatory two-day silence period ahead of voting, according to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS). Election Commission Secretariat Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said all campaign activities must stop by 7:30 a.m. on Feb. 10 to ensure compliance with election laws. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-elections-test-ties-with-india-as-china-deepens-outreach" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">parliamentary election and referendum</a>&nbsp;will be held on Thursday, with voting scheduled from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Balloting will take place through transparent ballot boxes across 299 constituencies nationwide. The Election Commission has cancelled polling in the Sherpur-3 constituency following the death of a Jamaat-e-Islami candidate, reducing the number of constituencies going to the polls from 300 to 299. According to EC officials, ballot papers have already been dispatched to returning officers in 49 districts, while the remaining consignments are expected to reach their destinations later today. <img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/281574fd-7a4e-4eb6-a13f-0b78b1653cd0.png" style="width: 1000px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">A total of 127.7 million voters are eligible to cast their ballots in the election and referendum. This includes 64.8 million male voters, 62.9 million female voters, and 1,220 voters from the hijra community. Among the constituencies, Jhalakathi-1 has the fewest voters at 228,431, while Gazipur-2 has the most at 804,333. Overall, 51 political parties are taking part in the election, with 2,034 candidates contesting, including 275 independents. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has fielded the largest number of candidates, with 291 contestants running under its paddy sheaf symbol. <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-election-commission-says-poll-preparations-complete" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Polling will be held</a>&nbsp;at 42,779 centres, with 247,482 polling booths set up. Dhaka-12 has the most candidates, with 15 in the race, while Pirojpur-1 has the fewest, with just two candidates. Around 800,000 election officials will be deployed to conduct the polls, while nearly 900,000 law enforcement personnel will be assigned to maintain security. In addition, 55,454 observers from 81 locally registered organisations will monitor the election, including 7,997 central observers and 47,457 deployed at the constituency level. Around 500 foreign observers will also be present, Election Commissioner Brig Gen Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah (retd) said.

This photograph, taken on Jan. 30, 2026, shows Ganosamhati Andolon party election candidate Taslima Akhter (centre R) speaking to her supporters during a rally in Dhaka ahead of Bangladesh’s general elections. (Photo: AFP/File)

Election commission official says ballot papers have already been dispatched to returning officers in 49 districts, while the remaining consignments are expected to reach their destinations later today.

Bangladesh elections: 2,034 candidates in race as electioneering ends Tuesday

NEW DELHI: Bangladesh&#39;s elections next week could reshape South Asia&#39;s balance of power, as Beijing seeks to consolidate influence and ties with India falter, analysts say.&nbsp;The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-election-commission-says-poll-preparations-complete" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Feb. 12 poll</a>&nbsp;will be the nation&#39;s first since a student-led uprising toppled former prime minister Sheikh Hasina&#39;s autocratic regime in August 2024.&nbsp;India&#39;s sheltering of Hasina &mdash; despite extradition requests &mdash; has angered Dhaka&#39;s interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, which has deepened engagement with China and Pakistan.&nbsp;The Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people maintained strong trade and defense ties with China under Hasina, but New Delhi was Dhaka&#39;s pre-eminent partner, an arrangement that analysts say is shifting.&nbsp;Beijing pivot&quot;The interim government in Bangladesh, and a future government, is really pivoting to China,&quot; said Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow at the US-based Council on Foreign Relations.&nbsp;&quot;Bangladesh has now become central to China&#39;s strategic thinking regarding the Bay of Bengal, and China is increasingly confident that Bangladesh will play a pro-China role in this strategy.&quot;&nbsp;Yunus&#39; first state visit was to China, signalling a strategic shift.&nbsp;The two countries in January inked a key new defense agreement for a drone plant at a proposed northern airbase near India.&nbsp;&quot;Whatever the outcomes of the elections, there is an irreversible possibility of further deepening Bangladesh-China relations,&quot; Delwar Hussain of the University of Dhaka said.&nbsp;&#39;Unremitting hostility&#39;Conversely, New Delhi and Dhaka have regularly sparred since Hasina&#39;s ouster.&nbsp;India&#39;s foreign ministry in December condemned what it called &quot;unremitting hostility against minorities&quot;, pointing to the violence against Hindus in Bangladesh.&nbsp;Police say around 70 members of Bangladesh&#39;s minority communities were killed in sectarian violence in 2025.&nbsp;Dhaka has accused India of exaggerating the scale of the violence. But there have also been sporadic efforts at reconciliation.&nbsp;India&#39;s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar visited Dhaka in January for the funeral of former leader Khaleda Zia, whose Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is widely seen as a frontrunner in the election.&nbsp;Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also sent a condolence message to her son Tarique Rahman, 60, who is seen as a potential prime minister if the BNP wins.&nbsp;But things unravelled when a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladeshs-minister-calls-for-moving-t20-world-cup-after-ipl-drops-mustafizur" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bangladeshi cricketer was removed</a>&nbsp;from the Indian Premier League after Hindu right-wing protests, leading Bangladesh to withdraw from the T20 World Cup in India.&nbsp;&#39;Stability over disruption&#39;Praveen Donthi of the International Crisis Group said both sides are likely to be pragmatic.&nbsp;&quot;Both New Delhi and Dhaka are fully aware of the costs of not addressing the deteriorating relations,&quot; he said.&nbsp;Dhaka has also deepened engagement with Pakistan, resuming direct flights in January after more than a decade.&nbsp;Experts say a new government will likely continue to normalize ties with Islamabad without undermining relations with New Delhi.&nbsp;&quot;The new dispensation will likely prioritize stability over disruption,&quot; Donthi said.&nbsp;Retired diplomat Hyumayun Kabir predicted ties could stabilize under an elected government, especially if the BNP wins.&nbsp;But even&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-religious-party-leader-eyes-power-after-decades-in-politics" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Jamaat-e-Islami</a>, the Islamist party once sharply at odds with India, has projected &quot;a kind of pragmatic realism&quot; in its campaign, he said.&nbsp;Despite heated rhetoric, the material core of the India-Bangladesh relationship remains.&nbsp;Trade has stayed stable, and only one Hasina-era bilateral deal, for Indian tugboats, has been scrapped.&nbsp;&quot;China delivers infrastructure in a way India cannot,&quot; said former Indian diplomat Dilip Sinha, who has served as New Delhi&#39;s deputy high commissioner in Bangladesh.&nbsp;&quot;But India provides things Bangladesh critically needs &mdash; power and yarn for the garment industry.&quot;&nbsp;Analysts suggested that inevitably stronger ties with China also need not mean hostilities with India.&nbsp;&quot;It is not an either-or situation,&quot; Kabir said. &quot;Both relationships can thrive at the same time.&quot;

Bangladeshi workers load empty ballot boxes onto a truck at the Election Commission building in Dhaka on February 7, 2026, ahead of the upcoming national elections. Photo: AFP/File)

Analysts suggest that inevitably stronger ties with China also need not mean hostilities with India.


Bangladesh elections test ties with India as China deepens outreach

DHAKA: The leader of Bangladesh&#39;s largest religious party and prime ministerial hopeful Shafiqur Rahman has contested three elections and lost. This time, he hopes to finally win. Voters in the Muslim-majority nation will head to the polls on Thursday for the first time since a 2024 uprising toppled Sheikh Hasina, who in her 15 years as prime minister crushed religious movements. Now, Rahman, a 67-year-old doctor and preacher, hopes his 11-party alliance could deliver him victory, worrying critics and minorities who fear a muslim-majority win could come at their expense. &quot;I stand for moral renewal in society,&quot; Rahman vowed in election promises. If successful, the former political prisoner could form the first religious party government in constitutionally secular Bangladesh. Dressed entirely in white, including a flowing white beard, he cuts a distinctive figure on the campaign trail &mdash; where his Jamaat-e-Islami party has put forward only male candidates. &quot;Good governance is the foundation of stability, peace and prosperity,&quot; he said, pledging rule-based and corruption-free leadership. Ex-prime minister Hasina, who is close to the Hindu-nationalist government of neighboring India, went after muslim supporters and cracked down on extremists, killing numerous people and arresting hundreds. Since her fall, key religious leaders have been released from prison. &#39;Locks&#39; and brooms Born in 1958 in the northeastern district of Moulvibazar, Rahman has been a longtime party activist, running first for parliament in 1996, then again in 2001 and 2018. His wife, Ameena Shafiq, is also a doctor, who was selected for one of the seats in parliament reserved for women in 2018. Their two daughters and son are also doctors. As party member and then leader, or &quot;Ameer,&quot; Rahman&#39;s determined push for power has sparked concern. Bangladesh has long been led by powerful women, including Hasina and her longtime rival, the late three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia. Comments Rahman made last year about women&#39;s employment, saying he wanted to encourage stay-at-home mothers, provoked a backlash. &quot;We don&#39;t want to lock women at home &mdash; we don&#39;t have enough money to buy the locks,&quot; he said at a rally. In January, broom-waving women in Dhaka marched on the streets to symbolically &quot;sweep&quot; him away after a social media post from Rahman had argued women being &quot;pushed out of home in the name of modernity&quot; was &quot;nothing but another form of prostitution.&rdquo; Rahman later claimed he had been &quot;hacked&quot; and the post was deleted. In carefully worded statements since, he has sought to reassure women. But some remain skeptical. &quot;You have to make your position clear regarding women who do not want to be directed by men, and those who belong to other faiths,&quot; said Tajnuba Jabin, who quit the National Citizen Party &mdash; formed by student leaders who spearheaded the uprising &mdash; when it allied with Rahman&#39;s party for the polls. &quot;Talk of women&#39;s rights sounds hollow unless you have a clear position,&quot; she told AFP. &#39;Inclusive&#39; Rahman is leading a coalition of religious groups, largely ideologically aligned with the Muslim Brotherhood, who sense their biggest opportunity in decades. The party&#39;s student wing has swept victories in university polls across the country of 170 million people, including in Dhaka University, which is often seen as a bellwether for a national vote. Salahuddin Muhammad Babar, editor of the right-wing newspaper Naya Diganta, said Rahman was &quot;inclusive and accommodative, which are his greatest strengths.&quot; The prospect of him being prime minister has nevertheless shaken minority communities. Around 10% of Bangladesh&#39;s population are non-Muslim, most of them Hindu. Rahman has sought to ease fears, insisting that the rights of minorities would be protected &quot;regardless of caste or creed,&quot; and put one Hindu candidate on the party slate. He has also struck a conciliatory tone on foreign policy, calling for a &quot;balanced&quot; relationship with India. But Rahman&#39;s Jamaat-led coalition also includes hardliners who have demanded restrictions on cultural activities they consider against their religion, including music and theatre festivals, women&#39;s football matches and kite-flying celebrations. More violent elements have smashed Sufi shrines, and even exhumed a Sufi leader&#39;s body and set it on fire.

Voters in the Muslim-majority nation will head to the polls on Thursday for the first time since a 2024 uprising toppled Sheikh Hasina, who in her 15 years as prime minister crushed religious movements.

Bangladesh religious party leader eyes power after decades in politics

ISLAMABAD: Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman said on Tuesday that those responsible for hacking his social media accounts have been identified, and efforts are underway to uncover the masterminds behind the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/microsoft-disrupts-cybercrime-service-linked-to-aienabled-fraud" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">cyberattack</a>, Bangladeshi media reported. He made these remarks while addressing a rally organized by the 11-party alliance at the Chattogram Port Authority School and College ground on Monday, according to The Daily Star. Shafiqur said his X&nbsp;account had been compromised to spread &ldquo;vile language&rdquo; and derogatory remarks targeting women, aiming to tarnish his image. &ldquo;Today, mothers see the 11-party alliance as the only guarantee of their dignity. On one hand, a certain party promises &lsquo;family cards&rsquo;; on the other, it lays hands on our mothers and sisters and threatens to strip them of their dignity,&rdquo; he said. He warned that such attacks would not be tolerated, adding, &ldquo;My mother&rsquo;s honor is above all else.&rdquo; Shafiqur also criticized&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/16-countries-to-send-57-observers-for-feb-12-election-bangladeshi-state-media" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">political rivals</a>, alleging that while his party supported families of martyrs and the injured after the July Uprising, a certain party engaged in extortion and land grabbing. He claimed that in the course of such &ldquo;occupying politics,&rdquo; the party was responsible for the deaths of 234 of its own members. Turning to the development of Chattogram, the Jamaat chief accused some individuals of &ldquo;selling out&rdquo; Chattogram port for personal gain over the decades. He promised that under the 11-party alliance, the port would remain in public hands and be upgraded to international standards free of corruption.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman speaks at an electoral rally at the Padua ACM High  School ground in Lohagara, Chattogram, on February 02, 2026. (Photo: BSS)

Shafiqur says his X account had been compromised to spread 'vile language' and derogatory remarks targeting women, aiming to tarnish his image.

Bangladesh Jamaat chief: Social account hackers traced, masterminds to be revealed

DHAKA: Textile worker Sabina Khatun is in limbo after losing her job during sweeping factory closures, caught up like millions in Bangladesh in the fallout from a 2024 uprising that toppled years of autocratic rule. In the 18 months since the collapse of Sheikh Hasina&#39;s government,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-remittance-inflow-surges-51-in-january" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bangladesh</a>&nbsp;has endured political turmoil but also biting economic pain -- with many hoping for a rebound under new leadership after elections on Feb. 12. &quot;I&#39;ve gone to a dozen factories looking for work,&quot; said Khatun, 30, who lost her job last year in garment hub Narayanganj. &quot;There are no openings.&quot; Second-largest producer&nbsp;Bangladesh, the world&#39;s second-largest producer of garments, has seen 240 factories shut since the August 2024 uprising, many of them in the textile industry, according to government data. That has dealt a blow to a major sector that forms 80% of Bangladesh&#39;s export economy. Some of the factories were owned by Hasina&#39;s cronies, who have since fled. Many workers like Khatun&nbsp;have been laid off, and closures are rippling through the wider labor market. &quot;Small markets, stores and low-cost cosmetics shops catering to female garment workers have all disappeared,&quot; said Iqbal Hossain, a trade union leader. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Improvement in economy&nbsp;</h2>The economy has improved since the chaotic aftermath of Hasina&#39;s ouster, but there are wider issues&nbsp;in the country of 170 million people. Salehuddin Ahmed, who holds the finance portfolio in the interim government, said the economy had shifted from the &quot;intensive care unit to the high dependency unit&quot;. Bangladesh&#39;s economy is expected to grow 4.7% this year, up from 3.7% in 2025, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/imf-sees-bangladesh-growth-rebounding-to-47-in-fy2627" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">International Monetary Fund</a>&nbsp;(IMF). Fahmida Khatun, head of the Dhaka-based Centre for Policy Dialogue, said foreign reserves have risen and the banking sector is showing signs of repair. &ldquo;But unemployment is rising, merchandise exports have declined, imports of heavy machinery and raw materials remain weak, and private-sector credit has hit a historic low,&rdquo; she told AFP. &quot;The gradual deterioration of law and order has emerged as the biggest threat.&quot; Trade deal with US&nbsp;In August, Bangladesh struck a trade deal with the United States -- a key market for ready-made garment exports -- scaling back President Donald Trump&#39;s threatened tariffs to 20%. But US orders &quot;remained static,&quot; said Mohiuddin Rubel, former head of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, noting that some new factories had opened. They, however, have had little impact on the labor market, as the unemployment rate remains high. Merchandise exports still fell for a fifth consecutive month in December 2025, and while inflation slightly eased, it continues to erode what people can afford. &quot;We don&#39;t buy fish or meat anymore,&quot; said unemployed textile worker Khatun, who continues her search for a job.&nbsp; &quot;Everyone tells me to come back after the election&quot;. Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, head of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies, said the interim government had done little to help the bruised textile sector. &quot;Some of these were big factories employing thousands of workers,&quot; he said. &quot;In some cases, the government sold factory land and assets to clear workers&#39; dues -- but there was no initiative to restart viable factories.&quot; Unemployment is at 4.63%, according to the latest government figures released in May, up from 3.95% recorded during the same period the previous year. &lsquo;We are all waiting for the election&rsquo;&nbsp;Once juggling multiple odd jobs, Helal Uddin now ekes out a living running a food cart. &quot;It&#39;s hard to pay the house rent with the meagre amount I earn now,&quot; the 33-year-old told AFP, gloomy about the &quot;sharp rise&quot; in the price of rice he serves. &quot;The economy is not moving,&quot; Uddin said. &quot;It&#39;s stuck. We are all waiting for the election.&quot; Autocratic Hasina governmentHasina, 78, was once praised for overseeing Bangladesh&#39;s rapid economic rise, with growth topping 7% annually and per capita GDP more than quadrupling since 2000. But she also presided over an autocratic government that crushed dissent, and now faces court cases alleging the looting of national wealth. She is a convicted fugitive in hiding in India, sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity. Economist Fahmida Khatun warned that the new administration will face many challenges. &ldquo;People hope things will improve after the election, but many of the problems are structural,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp; &ldquo;There is no quick fix.&rdquo;

In the 18 months since the collapse of Sheikh Hasina's government, Bangladesh has endured political turmoil but also biting economic pain -- with many hoping for a rebound under new leadership after elections on Feb. 12.

Mired in economic trouble, Bangladesh pins hopes on election boost

ISLAMABAD: At least 16 countries have accepted Bangladesh&rsquo;s invitation to send a total of 57 election observers for the country&rsquo;s 13th general election and the referendum on the July Charter, both scheduled to be held concurrently on February 12, state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) News reported on Friday. The observers will join several hundred international observers from the European Union, the Commonwealth, and various global organizations working on democratic governance and human rights, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-chief-adviser-urges-armed-forces-to-ensure-fair-february-elections" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Chief Adviser&rsquo;s</a>&nbsp;Press Wing. Bilateral delegations&nbsp; Among the bilateral delegations, Malaysia will send the largest contingent with 14 observers, followed by T&uuml;rkiye with 12 observers. The Malaysian team will be led by Dato Sri Ramlan Bin Dato Harun, chairman of the Election Commission of Malaysia. The Turkish delegation, made up of several members of parliament, will be led by Mehmet Vakur Erkul, a former Turkish ambassador to Bangladesh. Other countries confirming the deployment of observers include Indonesia (5), Japan (4), Pakistan (3), Bhutan (2), Maldives (2), Sri Lanka (1), the Philippines (2), Jordan (2), Iran (1), Georgia (2), Russia (2), Kyrgyzstan (2), Uzbekistan (1), and South Africa (2), the BSS report said. &nbsp;&ldquo;We have received confirmation of close to 400 election observers so far, and we expect a few more countries to confirm the visits of their delegates very soon,&rdquo; said Lamiya Morshed, senior secretary and SDG coordinator, who is supporting the coordination of election observers. Former President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo will lead the 14-member Commonwealth Observer Group. Other members include Jeffrey Salim Waheed, former deputy minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives; David John Francis, former foreign minister of Sierra Leone; and Ras Adiba Mohd Radzi, former senator of Malaysia. EU&nbsp;Election Observation MissionThe European Union Election Observation Mission will be led by Ivars Ijabs, chief observer and member of the European Parliament from Latvia. The mission will also include at least seven other Members of the European Parliament. Nearly 2,000&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/76-women-candidates-to-contest-in-bangladeshs-february-polls" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">candidates</a>, representing more than 50&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/parties-must-address-environment-in-election-manifestos-bangladeshi-climate-adviser" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">political parties</a>&nbsp;as well as independent contenders, are contesting the election for 300 parliamentary seats, which will be held alongside the referendum on the July reform charter.

The observers will join several hundred international observers from the European Union, the Commonwealth, and various global organizations working on democratic governance and human rights, according to Bangladesh Chief Adviser’s Press Wing.

Articles tagged with "Bangladesh Elections 2026"