Bangladesh General Election -2018

What is the news?

• Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has secured her third consecutive term with a landslide victory, Bangladesh’s Election Commission said on Monday.
• Her ruling party and its allies have won 288 of the 300 parliamentary seats contested, surpassing its previous election wins.

Why uproar in opposition?

• The opposition has condemned the vote as “farcical,” marred by violence, intimidation and vote rigging claims.
• They won just seven seats and have demanded a new vote.
• Bangladesh’s parliament has 350 seats in total, 50 of which are reserved for women and allotted proportional to the overall vote.

Why this election is important?

• It is after 10 years that Bangladesh and its people are witnessing an election that is being held in participation of all the major political parties.
• The last one held on January 5, 2014, was highly debated both nationally and internationally as it saw no election to more than half of the seats.A total of 153 constituencies out of the total 300 saw lawmakers elected uncontested – an election which was boycotted by prime opposition BNP.
• Sheikh Hasina remained in rule for two consecutive terms with the parliamentary opposition of Jatiya Party, which took part in the cabinet of Awami League.
• Sheikh Hasina’s long-term rival, Khaleda Zia, was sent to prison on corruption charges earlier this year and barred from competing in the vote, in a case which she claimed was politically motivated.In Ms Zia’s absence, Kamal Hossain, who was previously both an AL minister and Hasina ally, leads the main opposition grouping, the Jatiya Oikya Front, which includes Ms Zia’s Bangladesh National Party (BNP).

• Bangladesh is a Muslim-majority nation of more than 160 million people and faces issues ranging from possibly devastating climate change,Islamist militancy,  endemic poverty and corruption.

• The country has recently been in the international spotlight as hundred of thousands of rohingya muslims fled there from neighbouring myanmar.