Awami League registers thumping victory.
BAwami League lead by Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina has won the general elections in an emphatic fashion. The opposition has been vanquished, reduced to a single figure and Awami League alliance has won 288 of the 299 seats. Awami League alone has clinched 259 seats. BNP has won 5 and others 3. Jatiyo Party, a key Awami League which also contested separately in many places have won 20 seats. This paves the way for Sheikh Hasina to become Bangladesh PM for the fourth time. Awami League has now won third consecutive general elections.
The opposition has rejected the results and face of Jatiyo Oikyo Mancho (National Unity Front) Dr, Kamal Hossain has demanded repoll.
Dr Kamal Hossain dubbed the election result as 'vote dacoity' and demanded fresh polls under impartial EC. He said, " “More than 100 Oikya Front candidates have boycotted the election midway". He said a non-partisan government should conduct re-poll. BNP General secretary Fakhrul Alamgir also said that this result has vindicated their decision not to take part in the last elections as it is a 'cruel joke on democracy'.
Sheikh Hasina has won from her Gopalganj 3 seat by a massive margin of 229539 votes. In her first reaction after record third consecutive win in general elections, Hasina said as quoted by her political adviser HR Imam, " Not the time for victory marches, now is the time to build the nation".
She has also asked workers not to be complacent and not leave the counting centres til the last votes are tallied.
Bangladesh information minister has said that this result has shown that BNP's days are numbered.
Bangladesh ODI captain Mashrafe Mortaza too has won from Narail 3 contesting in an Awami league ticket.
Earlier at least 13 people were killed in poll-related violence amid allegations of manipulations by the ruling Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
According to the Election Commission, 1,848 candidates are contesting for 299 out of 300 Parliament seats. The polls are being held at 40,183 polling stations. Voting was suspended in one seat due to the death of a candidate.
The voting started at 8 AM (local time) and ended at 4 PM.
"The eight-hour long voting has ended as per schedule...preparedness are underway to start the counting," an Election Commission (EC) spokesman said.
Grand Alliance of 14 parties is led by Awami League and National Unity Front, a 20 party coalition is spearheaded by BNP
Latest trends
JP(Manju) 1
In total, Grand Alliance won 288 seats
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) 5
Gono Forum 2
In total, National United Front won 7 seats
Others 3
There will be repolls in some of the centres in Brahmaberia-3 constituent. The result will be announced after that.
Election was postponed for Gaibandha-3 constituency due to death of a candidate. Polling for that seat will be held on 27th January.
Awami Legaue+ 266
BNP+ 6
Jatiyo Party- 22
Others-4
Awami League on its own has won 257 of the 266 seats won by the alliance.
While opposition has alleged that polls were rigged, election observers from India, Nepal and OIC countries have expressed satisfaction with the entire electoral process.
Awami Legaue+ 249
BNP+ 2
Jatiyo Party- 0
Others-4
Awami league has already won 153 seats crossing the magic figure of 150. They are ahead in 96 seats currently. Results have been declared for 159 seats so far. It is completely a one-way street.
Meanwhile Awami League candidate and Bangladesh ODI Captain Mashrafe Mortaza has won from Narail. He won by an impressive 2 lakh 63 thousand votes.
Awami Legaue+ 253
BNP+ 2
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others-5
Awami League has already won 125 seats and is ahead in 128.
(Leads and wins)
Awami Legaue+ 190
BNP+ 2
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others-2
Awami League has already won 68 seats and are currently ahead in 122. Their total lead has crossed the half-way mark a while back. The opposition has been completely decimated in this election. Sheikh Hasina has won from her Gopalganj 3 seat by a massive margin of 229539 votes. In her first reaction after record third consecutive win in general elections, Hasina said, " Not the time for victory marches, now is the time to build the nation".
(Leads and wins)
Awami Legaue+ 144
BNP+ 3
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others-1
Awami League has won 46 seats so far.
The opposition national united front has rejected the result. Convener of NUF Dr Kamal has rejected the results and asked for repoll. United Front spokesperson Fakkhrul Islam has dubbed the results as a cruel joke.
(Leads and wins)
Awami Legaue+ 129
BNP+ 3
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others-1
Awami League has already won 31 seats. They are winning from all over the country, so the trend is likely to continue.
So far seats won in following divisions by Awami League:
Dhaka- 5
Chittagaon-3
Sylhet-3
Rajsahi-4
Khulna-7
Rangpur-6
Mymensingh- 2
BNP has open its account by picking up seat in Khulna.
Ershad of Jatiyo party has won from Rangpur 3.
(Leads and wins)
Awami Legaue+ 75
BNP+ 3
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others- 0
Already 17 wins for Awami League
Awami League has already won 5 seats. Candidates have won in Kurigram 3, Tangail 6, Mymensingh 3, Sirajganj 4, Nator 3.
Sheikh Hasina is leading comfortably from Gopalganj-3. She has been representing this constituency from 1991. BNP candidate is leading from Maulavi bazar.
First win has been announced. Awami League candidate Junaid Ahmed Polok has won from Nator 3. Nator 3 is in Rajshahi division.
Awami Legaue+ 34
BNP+ 2
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others- 0
Awami League+- 30
BNP+- 1
Jatiyo Party- 1
Others- 0
BNP has alleged that there have been rigging in at least 20% of seats.
BNP chief Secretay Mirza Fakhrul has lamented saying election in this manner is a huge loss for the country. It will lead to erosion of people's trust in democracy said senior BNP leader.
Grand Alliance – 22
National Unity Front – 1
Others - 1
All pictures from AFP
1. Allegations of vote rigging
)
Bangladesh's Election Commission is investigating allegations of vote rigging coming from across the country on Sunday, a spokesman told Reuters, as polling for a general election marred by violence ended and counting began.
2. 13 dead
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Clashes between supporters of the ruling Awami League and its opponents killed at least 10 and wounded more than 20, police said, amid reports that more than three dozen opposition candidates complaining of alleged vote rigging had pulled out of the first competitive poll in the country in a decade.
The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said one of its candidates from Dhaka was stabbed while he was moving around in his constituency. Police said the circumstances of the attack on Salahuddin Ahmed were not yet clear.
3. EC wil act if rigging confirmed
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The Election Commission said it would act if rigging was confirmed, even as at least three voters in southeast Bangladesh, including a journalist, said they were barred from entering polling booths or were told their ballot papers had already been filled in.
"Allegations are coming from across the country and those are under investigation," commission spokesman S.M. Asaduzzaman said. "If we get any confirmation from our own channels then measures will be taken as per rules."
4. Sparse turnout?
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Reuters reporters across the country of 165 million people saw sparse turnout at polling booths during the election, widely expected to be won by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, giving her a third straight term in office.
Mobile internet was blocked and the streets of the capital were largely deserted as many had left to vote in their home towns. In nine polling centres Reuters reporters visited in Dhaka, posters bearing the Awami League's "boat" symbol far outnumbered those of the opposition.
Mahbub Talukdar, one of the five election commissioners who stirred a controversy last week by saying there was no level-playing field for the parties, told Reuters he did not see any opposition polling agents near the Dhaka booth where he voted, suggesting they had been kept away.
5. Pre-poll clashes
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The clashes in the Muslim-majority country broke out between workers of the Awami League and its opponents, led by the BNP of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. At least one of the victims was attacked by a machete-carrying group, police said, adding a man from a paramilitary auxiliary force also died.
Alleging vote manipulation, at least six candidates fighting against the Awami League withdrew from the contest in Khulna, a divisional headquarters 300 km (186 miles) southwest of Dhaka. Media reports said across the country more than 40 out of 287 opposition candidates in fray pulled out alleging vote rigging.
6. Saw people stopping voters: Witness
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There are 300 parliamentary constituencies in the country.
Rasel, a 34-year-old voter in the southeastern district of Chittagong, said he saw police and some Awami League workers he knew stopping people from entering one polling centre.
"They told me that 'voting is going on nicely, you don’t need to go inside'. If you try to enter, you will be in trouble'," Rasel, who declined to give his second name fearing reprisals, told Reuters by phone.
The local electoral officer said he had investigated the incident and "found long queue in these centres and people were casting votes with a festive mood". The Awami League said opposition supporters were wrongly accusing the party.
7. HASINA CONFIDENT
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Soon after voting finished at 4 pm (1000 GMT), Reuters saw polling officials unsealing see-through ballot boxes and pouring the contents onto a blue plastic sheet on the floor of an election booth in Dhaka. TV channels have already started showing election trends and final results will be clear early on Monday.
The BNP boycotted the last election in 2014 claiming it wouldn't be free and fair. The party has been hobbled by the absence of its chairperson Khaleda, 74, who has been in jail since February on corruption charges which she says are politically motivated.
Hasina and Khaleda have alternated in power for most of the last three decades and this is the first election the BNP has contested without its leader.
8. National Unity Front Alliance look to upset Awami league
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It stitched together the National Unity Front alliance with smaller parties, but has alleged its supporters and candidates faced attacks and intimidation, including shootings and arrests, at the hands of ruling party activists during campaigning. Some BNP leaders and a European diplomat said they feared the election would be rigged.
Hasina's party dismissed the opposition charges, citing "one false allegation after another for months prior to election as polls show a landslide victory" for the ruling party.
"I believe that people will cast their votes in favour of Awami League to continue the pace of development," Hasina told reporters in Dhaka. "The 'boat' will surely win. I believe in democracy and I have confidence in the people of my country."
But opposition leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said a win for his side was "inevitable if the election is free and fair".
9. Hasina's time in numbers
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Hasina has already invited foreign journalists and poll observers to her official residence on Monday.
Under Hasina, the country's $280 billion economy grew 7.8 percent in the 2017/18 financial year that ended on June 30, compared with 5.1 percent when Hasina took over in 2008/09.
Over the same period, annual sales of its economic mainstay, the garment industry, nearly tripled, with garment exports worth $30.6 billion in 2017/18, making up 83.5 percent of total exports. One of Hasina's top jobs if she retains power will be to address demands by garment workers for a higher minimum wage.
10. What can we do if BNP polling agents didn't turn up: Chief Election Commissioner
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Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Hooda after giving vote in Dhaka said what can be done if BNP agents are not coming to the booth. The reason behind it can only be said by the party.
According to reports, there was no BNP polling agent even in the IES school in Dhaka, where CEC cast his vote.
Meanwhile BNP has alleged that their agents have been restrained from entering in many booths by Awami league workers. According to BNP, there has been rigging in around 20% of booths
