The 13th National Parliamentary Election has produced a series of high-profile wins, narrow defeats and closely contested races, as leaders from major political parties and alliances await final tallies from across the country.
According to preliminary and unofficial results available till late Thursday, the BNP-led alliance appeared to be ahead in terms of seats won so far, although counting was still underway in many constituencies.
Tarique wins in two constituencies
BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman has won in both Dhaka-17 and Bogra-6 constituencies, according to unofficial results confirmed by Shairul Kabir Khan, a member of the BNP Media Cell.
Fakhrul, Salahuddin take early leads
In Thakurgaon-1, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, contesting with the party’s “Sheaf of Paddy” symbol, was leading with 39,101 votes from 35 polling centres, according to preliminary results.
His closest rival, the Jamaat-e-Islami candidate contesting with the “Scale” symbol, secured 25,976 votes, while Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Khadimul Islam received 705 votes. The constituency has a total of 185 polling centres.
In Cox’s Bazar-1 (Chakaria-Pekua), BNP Standing Committee Member Salahuddin Ahmed was leading by a significant margin. Results from 74 of the 177 polling centres showed him securing 121,119 votes under the paddy sheaf symbol.
High-profile concessions and victories
In Dhaka-15 Jamaat-e-Islam Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman was leading by more than 19,000 votes in 120 centers out of 127 polling centers, against the BNP candidate.
In Dhaka-13 constituency, Bobby Hajjaj, the BNP-backed candidate with the Sheaf of Paddy symbol, defeated Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Ameer Maulana Mamunul Haque.
According to the Election Commission, Bobby Hajjaj secured 90,601 votes, while Mamunul Haque received 86,889 votes.
In Dhaka-11, Jamaat alliance candidate and NCP Convener Nahid Islam was leading BNP candidate MA Qayyum. After votes from 16 of the 163 centres were tallied, Nahid secured 8,969 votes, while Qayyum received 7,391.
In Kishoreganj-4 BNP candidate Freedom Fighter Fazlur Rahman secured a win with a big margin of more than 70,000 votes.
In Sunamganj-2 (Dirai-Shalla), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Shishir Manir conceded defeat Thursday evening.
In a Facebook post around 8:20pm, he acknowledged his loss and congratulated BNP candidate Nasir Uddin Chowdhury.
Meanwhile, in Brahmanbaria-2 (Sarail, Ashuganj and part of Bijoynagar), independent candidate Rumeen Farhana was leading.
In Comilla-4 (Debidwar), Hasnat Abdullah, chief organiser of the southern region of the National Citizen Party (NCP) and candidate of the 11-party alliance, was leading in four polling centres based on officially announced results.
In Rangpur, NCP Member Secretary Akhtar Hossain emerged victorious, according to preliminary reports.
Separately, Asif Mahmud wrote in a Facebook post that candidates contesting under the “Shapla Koli” symbol had secured victory in five constituencies so far, with several other seats witnessing neck-and-neck competition.
In Khulna-5, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar was defeated in a closely fought race.
Contesting with the “Scale” symbol, he received 144,956 votes, while his BNP rival Mohammad Ali Asgar (Lobby), contesting with the paddy sheaf symbol, secured 147,658 votes. The margin of victory was 2,702 votes.
In Patuakhali-3 (Galachipa-Dashmina), Nurul Haque Nur was declared elected. His independent rival Hasan Mamun congratulated him on his victory.
With results still being compiled from multiple constituencies, the overall picture continues to evolve.
Election officials are expected to formally announce final outcomes after completion of counting and verification processes.
