Awami League leadership rejects Bangladesh national polls, calls it "illegal"

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], February 12 (ANI): The Awami League on Thursday rejected Bangladesh's 13th National Parliamentary Election, terming it "illegal" and one-sided, accusing the current interim government under the Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus of being "unconstitutional".
Speaking to ANI in Kolkata, Awami League leader AFM Bahauddin Nasim said that a large part of the population was excluded from participating as the party was banned from contesting in the polls.
"These are one-sided elections announced by the illegal Election Commission of an illegal and unconstitutional government in Bangladesh. A section of the population of Bangladesh has been kept away from these elections. There is just one party in Bangladesh which is banned - Awami League. In the last 54 years in Bangladesh, the Awami League has won 11 of the 13 elections," he said.
Nasim alleged that under the current government, Bangladesh has had "no rule of law, no human rights, no basic rights".
"Under this illegal government, there have been great atrocities and unlawful deeds in the last 18 months. There is no rule of law, no human rights, no basic rights. These elections are just a drama. People have understood that these elections have no basis. The winner is pre-decided," he added.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh's High Commissioner to India, Riaz Hamidullah, offered a contrasting view of the elections.
He said the election saw a higher turnout, noting that, except in a few instances, the overall election was "very peaceful".
"Voting ended at 4 pm IST. Given the spontaneous turnout, people were admitted to the centres, and voting continued until 5. The most remarkable thing was that, except for a few isolated incidents and violence in a few places, it was very peaceful," he said.
"The voter turnout, especially among women and even the elderly, was noteworthy," he added.
Hamidullah added that, according to the Bangladesh Election Commission sources, over 60 per cent of registered voters, or more than 75 million out of 127 million registered voters, had cast their ballots, reflecting widespread public participation.
"The role of the military was equally noteworthy, especially in assisting and immediately intervening wherever there were clashes or people were involved in fights, which could have led to incidents. As I understand from sources within the Election Commission, unofficially, as of now, perhaps over 60 per cent voter turnout has taken place, which means that out of 127 million registered voters, over 75 million have cast their ballots," he said.
Earlier today, voting in Bangladesh for the 13th Parliamentary Election and referendum on the implementation of the July National Charter concluded across 299 constituencies, with election authorities initiating the counting process shortly after polling hours ended.
According to the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC), voting officially took place from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm (local time). However, officials clarified that individuals who had entered polling station premises before the close of voting were permitted to cast their ballots.
According to EC's Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed, voter turnout across 36,031 polling stations stood at 47.91 per cent as of 2:00 pm (local time), the Daily Star reported. However, a total of 42,651 polling centres were set up for Thursday's national election.
The elections come at a critical time in the country's history, almost two years after the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, was ousted following a student-led movement in July 2024.
The 2024 July Uprising ended the Bangladesh Awami League's regime, which has now been barred from participating in the current election.
Following this, the Bangladesh Awami League was barred from participating in the national polls after the interim government banned political activity and suspended its registration as a political party.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Islamic conservative party, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, which is leading an alliance with the National Citizen Party (NCP), formed following the student-led uprising, along with other parties on a seat-sharing basis, are the main competitors in the elections.
A total of 2034 candidates are contesting the polls, with 51 parties participating, according to the Daily Star. (ANI)