Bangladesh Nationalist Party won 209 seats yesterday in the first election since student-led revolution ousted Sheikh Hasina in 2024. The two-thirds majority gives Tarique Rahman, 60, power to implement constitutional reforms without opposition consent.
Rahman returned from 17-year UK exile in December. His party asked supporters to skip celebrations and offer prayers instead.
Jamaat-e-Islami took 68 seats, its strongest performance ever. The formerly banned party becomes main opposition in the 350-member parliament.
Hasina’s Awami League was barred from the election. The 78-year-old former leader was sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity during her final months in power and remains in India.
Voters simultaneously approved constitutional reforms by 60.26%. The July Charter establishes two-term prime minister limits, stronger judicial independence, and neutral interim governments during elections.
Turnout exceeded 60% versus 42% in 2024’s contested election under Hasina. India, Pakistan, the U.S., and China congratulated Rahman.
BNP officials said the party would formally request Hasina’s extradition from India.
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