Nava Thakuria, January 7, 2023

Bangladesh embraces 12th general elections (since its birth as a nation in1971) on Sunday, a working day in the Muslim majority country, amidst violenceand uncertainties as the prime opposition party has boycotted the polls.Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) also called for a 48-hour Hartal (generalstrike) beginning from 6 am on 6 January till 6 am on 8 January alleging thatthe election under the incumbent Awami League (AL) government led by PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina will never be fair and fair. Jamaat-e-Islami, a radicalparty of Bangladesh, took out processions in the capital city of Dhaka insupport of the Hartal, apprehending turmoil on the poll day. After BNP’sabsence only a compromised opposition Jatiya Party remains in the fray. Therest (nearly 25 political parties putting their candidates) are mostly alliesto the ruling party. So understandably PM Hasina is winning for the fourthconsecutive term to lead the poverty stricken south Asian nation, which isstrategically located between India and Myanmar.

The polling of votes began on 8 in the morning (Bangladesh is ahead of Indiaby 30 minutes) where 120 million registered electorates will exercise theirfranchise to elect 299 representatives for the Jatiya Sansad (election in oneconstituency was postponed due to the death of an independent candidate). Morethan 1500 candidates representing over 27 political parties are contesting thenational election, whose fates will be decided by the voters through over42,000 polling stations across the country. The polling will continue till 4 inthe afternoon and counting of ballots to start subsequently making the resultsout by Monday morning.

Meanwhile PM Hasina, accompanied by her sister Sheikh Rehana and daughterSaima Wazed, exercised her franchise as the first voter in Dhaka City Collegepolling station and expressed confidence to win the polls. Over 750,000 policeand paramilitary forces have been deployed on the ground, where BangladeshArmy, Navy, and Air Force personnel will also be on duty to ensure security to170 million Bangladeshi nationals during the polls. More than 150 foreignobservers representing over 30 countries and organisations like theCommonwealth, European Union, US-based International Republican Institute,South Asia Democratic Forum, National Democratic Institute, etc arrived inDhaka to monitor the election. Three senior members of the Election Commissionof India also joined the mission.

Bangladesh chief election commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal assured that theelection will be conducted in a free, fair and neutral manner. Each and everyBangladeshi voter can go to the polling centre to exercise their franchises,stated Awal adding that the Bangladesh polls should be observed by the nationalas well as international agencies. Even though the main opposition party (BNP)is not in the fray, it should not be a major challenge to the electioncommission, he added. Any obstruction of the electoral processes will not betolerated, asserted the election commission.

However, the prelude to the polls witnessed a series of violent incidents inthe country. The burning of Benapole Express’s four coaches on Friday night bythe miscreants resulted in the death of five passengers including two childrenand injuries to many others. The incident took place in Gopibagh area as thetrain was moving towards Kamlapur railway station in Dhaka. Next morning, apolling station (under Bandar police station) and a vehicle were set ablaze inChittagong locality. PM Hasina expressed shock over the casualties and prayedfor an early recovery to all injured persons.

Maintaining its demand to conduct the polls under a neutral and caretakergovernment, which Hasina denied, the BNP and its political allies organised anumber of political rallies in the country. But the mass rally on 28 Octoberturned violent, where at least four people were killed and nearly 300 vehiclestorched on the streets. The government in Dhaka started a massive crackdown andput thousands of BNP leaders (including its secretary general Mirza FakhrulIslam Alamgir) and workers behind the bars.

BNP’s president Khaleda Zia (78) is ailing and with more to it the formerBangla Prime Minister is under house arrest for graft charges. Even the party’sacting president Tarique Rahman has been living in self-imposed exile since2008. Son of former Bangla President Ziaur Rahman and Zia, even faced 18 monthsjail term before leaving to London and staying there till date. So the partyhas been termed as a leaderless entity on the ground and they are assumed notto be in a position to contest the elections.

Speaking to this writer from Dhaka, political analyst Abdul Kalam revealedthat this is really an opposition-less election as even Jatiya Party alsoreceived favour from the ruling AL. Initially, Jatiya Party was also planningto boycott the election along with the BNP and its allies. Soon the rulingparty vacated 26 seats for it, withdrawing the nominees to get the onlyopposition party in the fray. The ruling AL fielded candidates in 263constituencies and offered six seats to its political allies under Mahajoat.Hasina’s party also encouraged more AL leaders to file nominations so that the electioncan be shown as a participatory one. Among 400 independent candidates, one canfind many AL leaders as dummies, asserted Kalam.

Hasina (76) continues to win the parliamentary elections in 2008, 2014, and2019 to already emerge as the longest-serving government head among women inthe world. Daughter of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina urged theBangladeshi voters to exercise their franchises in more numbers. She claimedthat only AL can lead the country to prosperity and growth. In the electionmanifesto, Hasina promised to convert the digital Bangladesh to a SmartBangladesh. She also assured that her party will always protect and promote thespirit of democracy, offer quality education to youths, modernise agriculture,make healthcare services affordable to all, etc.