The alarming rise of Jamaat-e-Islami’s coalition to 77 seats, despite the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) securing a sweeping 212 out of 297 declared constituencies in the deeply flawed 13th National Parliament election, serves as a stark warning sign for Bangladesh’s future stability and secular values.
In this controversial electionโheld without the participation of the banned Awami League, the party that long championed secularism, economic development, and national sovereigntyโBNP and its allies are poised to return to power after nearly two decades.
The BNP chairman, Tarique Rahman, who was once unpopular for terrorism and corruption, returned home on December 25 last year after 17 years and is set to become the next prime minister.
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Yet, the emergence of Jamaat-e-Islami’s alliance as the main opposition, with 77 seats, raises grave concerns about the resurgence of extremist forces historically linked to violence, militancy, minority persecution, and anti-state activities.
BNP alone claimed 209 seats, with minor allies like Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP) under Andaliv Rahman Partho, Ganosamhati Andolan led by Zonayed Saki, and Gan Adhikar Parishad under Nurul Haq (Nur), each securing one. Independents took 7 seats, while Islami Andolan Bangladesh (led by Charmonai Pir) managed just one.
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Jamaat-e-Islami itself won 68 seatsโincluding the convicted war criminal ATM Azharul Islamโwhile its coalition partners included Yunus-backed National Citizens Party (NCP) with 6, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis under Mamunul Haque with 2, and another Khelafat Majlis faction with 1.
Jamaat-e-Islami, implicated in the 1971 genocide as collaborators with Pakistani forces, has since 1992 been tied to the creation and leadership of dozens of militant organisations. Its student wing, Islami Chhatra Shibir, has dominated these extremist groups.
During the 2024 anti-government uprising, Jamaatโalongside BNP and Hefazat-linked radicalsโunleashed extreme violence, later proudly admitting involvement in police killings, rapes, vandalism, looting, and arson after the Awami League government’s fall.
Since then, BNP and Jamaat-Shibir cadres have unleashed a reign of terror against Awami League leaders and activists: fabricated murder cases, mob killings, mass arrests, and rampant property seizures. Even the NCP, ostensibly crafted by Yunus, is repeatedly claimed by Jamaat-Shibir leaders as “their people,” exposing deep infiltration.
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Many journalists, researchers, and Awami League figures now fear that Jamaat’s strong 77-seat showing will perpetuate mob terrorism, assassinations, and vengeful politics rather than curb them. Their Pakistan-leaning, India-hostile stance could further embolden jihadist patronage, threatening regional peace and Bangladesh’s hard-won secular fabric.
As BNP forms the new government under Tarique Rahman, critical questions loom: Will they end the Yunus-era mobocracy, killings, land grabs, case-trading, nepotism, and corruption to deliver true justice? Will they lift the unjust ban and harassment cases against the Awami League? Will they scrap illegal ordinances and anti-national agreements? Most urgently, will they halt the alarming rise of militancyโor allow Jamaat’s influence to grow unchecked?
The Election Commission, in its concluding statement at Agargaon Secretariat on Friday, declared these results, postponing announcements for Chattogram-2 and Chattogram-4, while cancelling Sherpur-3 due to the death of a Jamaat candidate.
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In the accompanying illegitimate and unconstitutional referendum on the July Charterโpushed aggressively by the interim setup and Jamaat alliesโturnout was a mere 60.26%, with “Yes” at 48,074,429 votes and “No” at 22,565,627. Yet, widespread disbelief surrounds these figures, as earlier EC claims of 59.44% overall turnout clashed with ground realities: negligible voter presence until noon, reports of votes already cast by others, agents and officials stuffing ballots, and intimidation of Hindu voters.
The day before polling (Wednesday evening onward), Dhaka and the nation saw wholesale rigging, with intruders flooding centres to cast fake votesโa shameful chapter underscoring how this election, devoid of the Awami League’s inclusive vision, has opened the door to instability and extremist resurgence. True democracy demands accountability, not the empowerment of forces that once aided genocide and now threaten Bangladesh’s progress.
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