Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority nation of over 170 million people, goes to the general election on 12 February 2026 to elect its 13th Jatiya Sansad in Dhaka. According to the Bangladesh Election Commission, a total of 127,711,895 voters are eligible to cast their ballots, including more than 4.5 million newly registered young voters who have attained the age of 18. Voting will take place at 42,766 polling stations across the country, with 785,225 presiding and polling officers deployed. More than 900,000 security personnel are expected to oversee the process and ensure the safety of candidates and voters.
Altogether, 2,034 candidates representing 51 political parties, along with 275 independents, are contesting 299 parliamentary seats. Polling in one constituency has been postponed following the death of a candidate from Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh. Only 78 women, including 17 independents, are contesting the direct elections. An additional 50 seats are reserved for women, who will be elected through an indirect voting process.
Campaigning began on 22 January and concluded at 7:30 pm on 10 February. Electoral authorities have imposed a ban on public rallies and processions for 96 hours before and after polling day. Voting on Thursday will run from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm. Nearly 500 foreign election observers, along with over 150 journalists representing 45 international media outlets, have arrived in the country. Notably, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League has been barred from participating in the election, leaving its principal rival, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), with expanded political space. The previous general election was held in January 2024, but the ouster of Hasina’s government following a student-led mass uprising six months later led to the announcement of fresh polls.
Hasina, who had governed Bangladesh since 2009 after winning consecutive elections, left the country amid a mass uprising on 5 August 2024 and took temporary refuge in neighbouring India, where she is reportedly residing in New Delhi. The septuagenarian leader, widely regarded as maintaining close ties with India, was recently convicted by a local court and sentenced to death in absentia on charges related to crimes against humanity. The July–August 2024 unrest reportedly resulted in more than 1,400 deaths, including minors, and paved the way for an interim government led by Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus. The Yunus administration has sought Hasina’s extradition, contributing to diplomatic strains between Dhaka and New Delhi ahead of the elections.
The political climate has remained tense under the interim administration. Tensions escalated following the shooting of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a youth leader who had emerged during the July 2024 protests against the Hasina government. Hadi later died in Singapore on 18 December while undergoing treatment. Unverified reports that his alleged attackers had fled to India contributed to renewed anti-India sentiment in Bangladesh. Several incidents of violence targeting minority communities were reported in the aftermath, prompting concern in India. Protests occurred outside Indian missions in Bangladesh, followed by counter-demonstrations near Bangladeshi missions in India. Against the backdrop of diplomatic tensions, both countries have restricted tourist visas and summoned each other’s high commissioners on multiple occasions to lodge protests.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs recently stated that over 2,900 incidents involving attacks on religious minorities were reported in Bangladesh under the Yunus-led interim government, expressing concern over alleged hostility against Hindus, Christians, and Buddhists. Independent sources have recorded nearly 200 deaths linked to mob violence over the past year. The Bangladesh Hindu, Buddhist and Christian Unity Council has also reported a sharp rise in incidents targeting minorities amid political instability following Hasina’s removal from office.
International media reported several incidents in December and January involving members of minority communities. On 18 December, Deepu Chandra Das, 29, was allegedly lynched in Mymensingh over accusations of blasphemy. Amrit Mondal, 30, was killed in Rajbari on 24 December. Bajendra Biswas, 42, a garment factory worker, was shot dead in Mymensingh on 29 December. Businessman Khokon Chandra Das, 50, was attacked in Shariatpur and later died in hospital on 3 January. Samir Kumar Das, 28, an auto-rickshaw driver, was stabbed to death in Chittagong on 11 January. Additional deaths, including those of Jagannath University student Akash Sarkar and others, have also been reported, contributing to concerns among minority groups.
The New Delhi-based Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG) has documented what it describes as a surge in targeted attacks against Bangladesh’s Hindu minority community, attributing the incidents to Islamist elements operating amid election-related unrest. RRAG director Suhas Chakma has alleged that temples have been set on fire, homes vandalised and minorities physically assaulted. According to RRAG, Bangladesh recorded more than 520 communal attacks in 2025, resulting in over 60 deaths among non-Muslims and at least 28 cases of sexual violence. Reports of attacks on religious sites and desecration of deities have also emerged.
Chakma has argued that official denials of a religious dimension to the violence risk emboldening extremist elements. He also claimed that some victims, fearing reprisals, described targeted arson attacks as accidents. Bangladesh’s government press wing acknowledged that at least 274 violent incidents occurred in the latter half of December following Hadi’s death.
Tensions further escalated after Hasina delivered a public address on 23 January criticising the interim administration and accusing it of presiding over an “illegal and violent regime.” Speaking via an audio message at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in New Delhi, she rejected the charges against her and denied personal involvement in any crimes against humanity. Dhaka responded by accusing New Delhi of giving her undue space, thereby exacerbating bilateral tensions.
A trader in Dhaka observed that elections in Bangladesh have long been contentious, noting that the BNP had boycotted previous national polls in 2014, 2018 and 2024, leading to low voter turnout. He suggested that while the absence of the Awami League is significant, past elections also proceeded without full participation from major parties. He added that Hasina’s continued presence in India remains a sensitive issue in bilateral relations and questioned the broader implications of political leaders and party members residing abroad.
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*Senior journalist based in Guwahati
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