Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has won parliamentary elections on Sunday that were boycotted by the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the country’s election commission announced.
The Awami League “won more than 50 percent of the seats” in the unicameral parliament, an election commission spokesman told AFP, hours after the polls closed. In power since 2009, Sheikh Hasina, head of the Awami League party, is heading for a fifth term.
After casting her vote in Dhaka, Sheikh Hasina, 76, urged voters to go to the polls, promising “free and fair” elections. In passing, she told reporters that the BNP is a “terrorist organization”.
The BNP has called for a national boycott, urging people not to go to the polls.
Although Sheikh Hasina has long been popular for her economic progress, difficulties have recently arisen, with rising prices and problems with electricity supply.
The government is also accused of serious violations of human rights and merciless repression of the opposition.
The BNP condemned the “fake election”.
“What happened is not an election, but an embarrassment to Bangladesh’s democratic aspirations,” party leader Tariq Raman said on social media from London, where he has lived in exile since 2008. He added that he had seen “disturbing photos and videos” supporting his claims.
During the day, the head of the election commission estimated the turnout at around 40 percent.
Many citizens told AFP that they will not go to the polls because the result is known in advance.
“Why should I go to vote when one party is participating and the other is not,” Muhamed Sajdur said.
Authorities have deployed more than 800,000 security forces to maintain order during the election.
Close to 120 million people had the right to vote, in the eighth most populous country in the world.
