BNP Wins Landslide Victory in 13th National Parliamentary Election

Staff Reporter: The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has secured a landslide victory in the 13th National Parliamentary Election.

According to the latest unofficial results from Thursday’s peaceful election, BNP and its allied candidates have won 213 seats. Candidates from the Jamaat-e-Islami–backed alliance secured 77 seats — including 68 seats for Jamaat, 6 for NCP, and 3 for Khelafat Majlis. Independent candidates won 8 seats, while one candidate from Islami Andolan Bangladesh was also elected.

As of 2:45 a.m., the Election Commission had officially announced results for only 10 constituencies. None of the Dhaka seats had yet been formally declared at that time.

Simultaneously, in the referendum on the July National Charter, more votes were cast in favor of “Yes.” However, the Election Commission had not yet disclosed voter turnout or the percentage supporting the measure at the time of reporting early Friday morning.

With victories in more than two-thirds of the seats, BNP has secured an absolute majority to form the government.

BNP Chair Tarique Rahman has announced that there will be no victory procession to celebrate the landslide win. Instead, the party has called for special prayers at mosques across the country on Friday and instructed supporters not to hold any rallies.

Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus thanked the people of Bangladesh for ensuring a peaceful election.

Key Wins

BNP Chair Tarique Rahman won from two constituencies — one in Dhaka and one in Bogura.

Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman and NCP Convener Nahid Islam each won seats in Dhaka.

Several senior Jamaat alliance leaders were defeated, including:

Khelafat Majlis Ameer Maulana Mamunul Haque, AB Party Chairman Mujibur Rahman Manju, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar, In Dhaka, BNP won 14 of 20 seats, while Jamaat and NCP secured the remaining six.

BNP performed strongest in Sylhet Division, winning 16 out of 17 seats. The party also achieved strong results in eastern and southern regions, while the Jamaat-led alliance performed better in northern and western areas.

Election Process

Voting was conducted by paper ballot from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. across 299 constituencies in a festive and violence-free environment. No fatalities were reported on election day.

After more than 15 years, voters participated in what many described as a democratic environment without fear.

More than 900,000 members of law enforcement — including the Army, BGB, RAB, and Police — were deployed nationwide. The Army and BGB acted as strike forces outside polling centers.

Chief Election Commissioner’s Statement

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) A.M.M. Nasir Uddin said:

“We have fulfilled the promise we made to the nation. We wanted to demonstrate that there was no secrecy. We tried to deliver a fully transparent election.”

He described the vote as one of the best in the country’s history and emphasized that despite minor limitations in a nation of 180 million people and 127 million voters — including printing and distributing 254 million ballots including the referendum — the Election Commission successfully delivered a credible and neutral election.

He thanked voters, political parties, and law enforcement agencies for their cooperation.

Allegations of Delayed Results

However, Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman alleged that returning officers in several constituencies were delaying result announcements.

At an emergency press conference late Thursday night with leaders of the 11-party electoral alliance, he stated:

“In several seats where we are leading and counting has been completed, returning officers are not announcing results. Some results were briefly posted online and then removed.”

He described the situation as “cat-and-mouse games” in certain constituencies, particularly Dhaka-8.

He said the alliance would wait for final results before making a formal statement but emphasized they do not wish to return to old political culture.

“There is no guarantee of winning in elections or politics. If politics is for the people, this must be accepted.”

He was joined at the press conference by NCP Convener Nahid Islam and Khelafat Majlis Ameer Mamunul Haque.

(*This report is produced by Bangla Press. Republishing our content, images, or broadcasts in any other media outlet without permission is strictly prohibited.)

BP/SM