Kathmandu: Voting is taking place in Bangladesh today as the country holds its first election since the ousting of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Polling for the formation of a new government will continue until 4:30 PM local time.
According to the BBC, over 120 million Bangladeshi citizens are eligible to vote. Hasina was removed from power following the student-led protests in 2024.
After Hasina fled the country, an interim government was formed under Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus. The student movement that led to Hasina’s removal resulted in the deaths of nearly 1,400 protesters.
Last November, a Bangladeshi court sentenced former Prime Minister Hasina to death in a case related to crimes against humanity. Her party, the Awami League, has been barred from participating in this election.
The contest is now primarily between the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami, which has formed an alliance with a party that emerged from the student protests.
