BNP, allies poised for landslide in historic polls

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) -led coalition was poised for winning Thursday's general election by a landslide majority to lead Bangladesh's post-uprising democratic transition.
According to available unofficial results from 234 constituencies of the 300-seat parliament on stake, the BNP coalition bagged 181 seats while its nearest rival, Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance received 51 seats.
Independents had a poor showing in the race with only two seats.
BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman has been unofficially declared elected from Dhaka-17 and Bogura-6 constituencies in the 13th national parliamentary election.
BNP Election Steering Committee spokesperson Mahdi Amin confirmed the development at a media briefing at the party's Gulshan office on Thursday night.
According to unofficial results, Tarique secured 60,215 votes in Dhaka-17, defeating Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami candidate SM Khalekuzzaman, who received 24,524 votes.
In Bogura-6, the BNP chief polled 216,284 votes. His nearest rival, Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Md Abidur Rahman, secured 97,626 votes with the scale symbol.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir won by about 97,000 votes from Thakurgaon-1 constituency.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman has been unofficially declared elected from the Dhaka-15 (Mirpur-Kafrul) constituency.
Contesting as a candidate of the 11-party alliance with the 'Scales' symbol, he defeated his nearest rival, BNP candidate Md Shafiqul Islam Khan, by a margin of 20,725 votes.
National Citizen Party (NCP) founding convener Nahid Islam has been unofficially declared elected.
According to unofficial results from all 162 polling centres in Dhaka-11 constituency, Nahid Islam, contesting with the "Water Lily Bud" symbol, secured 92,083 votes.
Zonayed Saki, chief coordinator of Ganosanghati Andolon and a candidate backed by the BNP-led alliance, has been unofficially declared elected from Brahmanbaria-6 (Bancharampur) constituency.
Leading businessman and BNP candidate Abdul Awal Mintoo has been unofficially declared elected from the Feni-3 (Sonagazi-Daganbhuiyan) constituency.
BNP heavyweight candidate and former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar has been unofficially declared elected from the Netrakona-4 (Madan-Mohanganj-Khaliajuri) constituency.
Hasnat Abdullah, a candidate of the 11-party alliance and chief organiser (South) of the National Citizen Party (NCP), has been unofficially declared elected from the Cumilla-4 (Debidwar) constituency.
BNP candidate Barkat Ullah Bulu has been unofficially declared elected from the Noakhali-3 (Begumganj) constituency following a closely contested race.
The 13th parliamentary election alongside constitutional-reform referendum passed off Thursday largely peacefully despite isolated violence, allegations of irregularities and four reported deaths in the run-up.
Matching a pleasant pre-spring ambience, voting in the twin polls concluded in fairly in a festive mood in the process democratic transition after political upheavals and regime change in an uprising.
All were agog for the outcome as the vote count was underway, and preliminary results from a small number of polling centres across the country showed the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leading in majority of the 299 seats in the 300-seat parliament on stake.
However, those centres represent only 5.0 per cent of the total centres of their respective constituencies, making it too early to draw firm conclusions.
Latest available unofficial results gave the BNP 73 seats while 38 went to Jamaat-led 11-party coalition. One independent candidate also won.
Heavyweight candidates like BNP chairman Tarique Rahman unofficially declared elected in both the seats -- one in Dhaka and one in Bogra -- he contested. Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman and NCP chief Nahid Islam were leading in the race in their respective constituencies in the initial counting of some centres.
Polling began simultaneously at 7.30am in the 299 constituencies across the country and continued without break until 4.30pm.
The vote comes 18 months after the July-August 2024 mass uprising that led to the fall of the Awami League government, and is widely seen as a decisive step under the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus towards restoring an elected administration.
Alongside the parliamentary contest, voters cast ballots in a referendum on proposed fundamental amendments to the constitution. A "Yes" vote would initiate the implementation of sweeping structural reforms under the July National Charter. Preliminary results indicate a possible win for 'Yes' vote in the referendum.
By 7:00pm, when this report was filed, the Election Commission (EC) had yet to receive voter-turnout data from 6,620 of the country's 42,651 polling centres, said the commission's senior secretary, Akhtar Ahmed.
Earlier at 4:00pm, Ahmed told reporters that turnout between 7.30am and 2:00pm stood at 47.91 per cent, based on data from 36,031 centres. But unofficial sources in the EC said the voter turnout would be around 60 per cent. In some districts the turnout was over 70 per cent.
On the overall situation, Ahmed said, "No major problems had been reported." Referring to visits to two polling stations, he noted that turnout had initially appeared low but increased as the day progressed.
Authorities confirmed that four people were killed in separate incidents during the election period. While officials described the vote as orderly overall, several political parties raised complaints ranging from intimidation to alleged ballot manipulation.
In some constituencies, including Cumilla-8, Shariatpur-2 and Patuakhali-1, leaders of an 11-party electoral alliance demanded suspension of voting at certain centres, claiming that voters had been unable to cast ballot freely. The demand was made after a meeting with the chief election commissioner.
BNP leaders alleged violence, rigging and the use of "black money" from the previous night in an attempt to discredit the election. Speaking at a press conference in Dhaka, Mahdi Amin, spokesperson for the BNP's election-management committee, claimed that pre-stamped ballots, fake votes and instances of genuine voters being turned away had occurred in some areas.
He also alleged that votes had been cast in the names of deceased individuals, too.
"If people can vote freely, no conspiracy will succeed," BNP chair Tarique Rahman said after casting his ballot in Dhaka-17 constituency.
He made it clear that his party would accept the results if the election proved neutral and controversy-free, but warned that manipulated outcomes would not be recognised.
"A peaceful and impartial vote will place democracy on a strong foundation," said Tarique, who is in the fray on homecoming after 17 years in exile.
Jamaat-e-Islami's leader, Shafiqur Rahman, also alleged attempts at fraudulent voting in some areas and called on supporters to guard polling stations until results were announced to "protect the people's mandate".
Chief Adviser of the post-uprising government Muhammad Yunus voted at Gulshan Model School and College in the capital, telling reporters: "Today is the birthday of a new Bangladesh. A day of great joy in my life, a day of great joy for all Bangladeshis. A day of liberation. The end of a nightmare and the beginning of a new dream."
He likened the unique polls to a great religious festival and greeted the nation with the words: "Eid Mubarak."