Bangladesh: BNP, allies linked to majority of electoral violence during 2026 polls

Dhaka, Aug 11 (IANS) As electoral violence remained a major concern before, during and after Bangladesh’s 2026 national polls, the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies were linked to the largest share of incidents, local media reported, citing a human rights group.

In its monitoring report, Dhaka-based human rights group ‘Odhikar’ documented that the BNP and its allies were linked to 52 per cent of electoral violence incidents before the election, 53 per cent on polling day and 75 per cent in the aftermath of the polls.

Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami and its allies were associated with 15 per cent of incidents recorded before the election, 13 per cent on election day and 9 per cent in the post-election period, Bangladesh’s leading newspaper The Daily Star reported.

The findings were presented on Monday during a dialogue held at the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) in Dhaka.

The report noted that incidents of localised violence and intimidation continued throughout the 2026 election campaign.

Among all districts in Bangladesh, Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bhola, Mymensingh and Dhaka emerged as the main hotspots. Threats, intimidation and harassment were the predominant forms of violence, with physical assaults, property damage and deaths becoming more prevalent in the post-election period. As per the findings, 62 incidents were recorded before the polls.

Chattogram recorded the highest number of incidents at 11, followed by Cox’s Bazar with eight. Dhaka and Mymensingh reported five incidents each, while Sirajganj recorded four. Authorities took some form of action in 34 of the pre-election incidents, whereas no action was reported in 28 cases.

Odhikar documented 32 incidents across 19 constituencies on election day, with Mymensingh accounting for seven and Bhola six. Chattogram recorded four incidents, while Cox’s Bazar and Feni reported three each, The Daily Star reported.

BNP and its allies were associated with 17 of the 32 incidents, while Jamaat and its allies were linked to four and Islami Andolan Bangladesh to two. Authorities reportedly took no action in 11 incidents on election day, while the response in seven cases could not be ascertained.

Last month, Odhikar reported that at least 33 people were killed in mob attacks in Bangladesh while political violence across the country claimed 41 lives and left 970 others injured between April and June this year.

–IANS

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