Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami raise concerns about integrity of poll results

Bangladesh’s Jamaat-e-Islami stated on Friday that it had serious concerns about the credibility of the vote-counting process, a day after elections in which its rivals claimed an emphatic win.

The statement came shortly after Tarique Rahman’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) announced that it had secured a majority in Thursday’s key election and would move to form the next government.

In a public post, Jamaat-e-Islami thanked citizens for turning out in large numbers and voting peacefully, but said it was dissatisfied with how the results were being handled.

The party alleged that candidates from the 11-party alliance had narrowly and suspiciously lost in several constituencies, pointed to repeated discrepancies and alleged fabrications in unofficial results, criticised the Election Commission for not publishing voter turnout figures, and claimed there were signs that parts of the administration favoured a major political party. Taken together, it said, these issues raised significant doubts about the integrity of the outcome, Maktoob Media reported.

The party also called on supporters to remain calm and wait for the official programme of the 11-party alliance, adding that its struggle for justice and a more humane Bangladesh would continue.

Meanwhile, Rahman’s BNP declared victory after local media reported that the centre-right party had won a two-thirds majority in the election. Jamuna TV, citing provisional figures, reported that the BNP and its allies had secured 211 of the 299 seats, while the Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance won 70 seats. The Bangladesh Election Commission has yet to release the official results, though an announcement is expected soon.