Bangladeshi Voters Call It A Day: BNP Secures Two-Thirds Majority |
The verdict given by the majority of Bangladeshi voters in the February 12 general elections is unprecedented. By securing more than 200 seats in the 300-member national assembly, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) will get a two-thirds majority, while the Islamic alliance led by Jamaat-i-Islami and the National Citizens Party (NCP) will have around 68 seats, depriving them of the status of playing a strong opposition. With the Awami League not allowed to contest the polls, the field was open for its former opponents to sweep the elections.
Both Jamaat-i-Islami and the BNP faced the wrath of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from 2008 onwards, when the Awami League came to power, until August 2024, when it was overthrown as a result of a popular revolt led by the students. But both Jamaat and the BNP, who were allies from 2001 till 2024, parted ways and contested the elections separately.
Tarique Rehman, the son of former President Zia-ur-Rehman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who remained in exile from 2008 till December 2025, will assume power with a two-thirds majority in the national assembly of Bangladesh. A majority of voters also approved the referendum which was held along with the general elections. Based on the ‘July Charter,’ the referendum will pave the way for constitutional reforms like a ban on seeking more than two terms for the Prime Minister; it will allow the formation of a caretaker government before general elections and, among other things, will introduce a bicameral parliament, enhance presidential powers, and ensure judicial independence. It is another issue whether the BNP, which is against putting a restriction on more than two terms for a prime minister, will accept that item approved in the referendum or, with its two-thirds majority, try to delete that constitutional change.
If the BNP fails to learn lessons from its past blunders, one can expect a surge of polarization and schism in society
If the BNP fails to learn lessons from its past blunders, one can expect a surge of polarization and schism in society
It is a matter of embarrassment for........