Monday, 01 September, 2025
The political cloud that hung heavily over Bangladesh’s capital after Friday’s violent clashes appears to be lifting, yet tensions remain high as the country prepares for a historic general election in early February 2026.
Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Saturday reaffirmed that no force, whether internal or external, would be allowed to obstruct the 13th parliamentary election, which is scheduled to take place before 15 February.
“The polls will be held before 15 February. No force can prevent it. No conspiracy can stop it. The environment is sufficiently conducive to hold the elections,” Alam declared while briefing reporters outside Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus’s Jamuna residence.
The assurances followed a violent confrontation in Kakrail on Friday, where clashes between the Jatiya Party and the Gono Odhikar Parishad left several people injured. Among them was the latter’s president, Nurul Haque Nur, widely known as VP Nur, who is now critically injured in hospital after a police baton charge.
The incident has heightened tensions across the political spectrum.
In retaliation, Gono Odhikar activists vandalised and set fire to the Jatiya Party’s central office in Kakrail on Saturday evening, while further arson attacks and vandalism targeted its offices in Thakurgaon, Rajshahi, Tangail and Mymensingh.
The escalation has raised fears that political violence could spiral in the weeks leading up to the election.
BNP Standing Committee member Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, along with leaders of BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP), condemned the assault on VP Nur and urged the interim government to ensure the election is held on time and in a credible manner.
In response, Chief Adviser Yunus moved quickly to calm political tempers, convening back-to-back meetings with BNP, Jamaat and NCP leaders on Saturday. His office confirmed that discussions would focus on securing a free, fair and timely election.
In a strongly worded statement, the interim government condemned the attack on Nur, pledged the highest standard of medical care, and promised a thorough, impartial investigation. “No individual, regardless of influence or position, will be spared from accountability. Justice will be delivered transparently and swiftly,” the statement said.
The Election Commission has already unveiled its roadmap, aiming to hold the polls in the first half of February 2026, with the schedule due to be announced 60 days before voting. This will be the first election since student-led protests toppled Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule in August 2024.
After weeks of mass youth-led demonstrations against her increasingly authoritarian regime, Hasina fled to India and her Awami League was subsequently banned. Many Bangladeshis now refer to those events as the nation’s “second liberation”.
In the year since, Nobel laureate Yunus has faced immense challenges in balancing reformist pledges with a fragile law-and-order situation and persistent rivalries among political forces.
He initially suggested holding elections in June 2026, but under pressure from BNP, Jamaat, NCP and student groups, the polls were moved forward to February, ahead of Ramadan.
“For many years, none of us have been able to vote. This time, we will all vote. No one will be left out,” the 85-year-old interim leader declared in a televised address earlier this week.
His promise to enshrine the student-led uprising in the constitution through what he calls the “July Declaration” has further heightened expectations that the polls could reshape the country’s political future.
Yet uncertainty persists. Violent confrontations such as Friday’s raise concerns about security, while the absence of the Awami League from the contest raises questions of legitimacy, even as many argue its exclusion was inevitable after years of repression.
Student groups, emboldened by their pivotal role in Hasina’s downfall, continue to press for sweeping reforms and accountability, while the international community is closely monitoring whether Bangladesh can deliver a free and fair election after years of democratic backsliding.
For now, Yunus and his interim administration appear resolute in their determination to proceed with the vote on schedule. But as recent events have shown, conspiracies, unrest and entrenched rivalries still threaten to derail the country’s fragile path towards democracy.
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The political cloud that hung heavily over Bangladesh’s capital after Friday’s violent clashes appears to be lifting, yet tensions remain high as the country prepares for a historic general election in early February 2026.
Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Saturday reaffirmed that no force, whether internal or external, would be allowed to obstruct the 13th parliamentary election, which is scheduled to take place before 15 February.
“The polls will be held before 15 February. No force can prevent it. No conspiracy can stop it. The environment is sufficiently conducive to hold the elections,” Alam declared while briefing reporters outside Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus’s Jamuna residence.
The assurances followed a violent confrontation in Kakrail on Friday, where clashes between the Jatiya Party and the Gono Odhikar Parishad left several people injured. Among them was the latter’s president, Nurul Haque Nur, widely known as VP Nur, who is now critically injured in hospital after a police baton charge.
The incident has heightened tensions across the political spectrum.
In retaliation, Gono Odhikar activists vandalised and set fire to the Jatiya Party’s central office in Kakrail on Saturday evening, while further arson attacks and vandalism targeted its offices in Thakurgaon, Rajshahi, Tangail and Mymensingh.
The escalation has raised fears that political violence could spiral in the weeks leading up to the election.
BNP Standing Committee member Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, along with leaders of BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP), condemned the assault on VP Nur and urged the interim government to ensure the election is held on time and in a credible manner.
In response, Chief Adviser Yunus moved quickly to calm political tempers, convening back-to-back meetings with BNP, Jamaat and NCP leaders on Saturday. His office confirmed that discussions would focus on securing a free, fair and timely election.
In a strongly worded statement, the interim government condemned the attack on Nur, pledged the highest standard of medical care, and promised a thorough, impartial investigation. “No individual, regardless of influence or position, will be spared from accountability. Justice will be delivered transparently and swiftly,” the statement said.
The Election Commission has already unveiled its roadmap, aiming to hold the polls in the first half of February 2026, with the schedule due to be announced 60 days before voting. This will be the first election since student-led protests toppled Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule in August 2024.
After weeks of mass youth-led demonstrations against her increasingly authoritarian regime, Hasina fled to India and her Awami League was subsequently banned. Many Bangladeshis now refer to those events as the nation’s “second liberation”.
In the year since, Nobel laureate Yunus has faced immense challenges in balancing reformist pledges with a fragile law-and-order situation and persistent rivalries among political forces.
He initially suggested holding elections in June 2026, but under pressure from BNP, Jamaat, NCP and student groups, the polls were moved forward to February, ahead of Ramadan.
“For many years, none of us have been able to vote. This time, we will all vote. No one will be left out,” the 85-year-old interim leader declared in a televised address earlier this week.
His promise to enshrine the student-led uprising in the constitution through what he calls the “July Declaration” has further heightened expectations that the polls could reshape the country’s political future.
Yet uncertainty persists. Violent confrontations such as Friday’s raise concerns about security, while the absence of the Awami League from the contest raises questions of legitimacy, even as many argue its exclusion was inevitable after years of repression.
Student groups, emboldened by their pivotal role in Hasina’s downfall, continue to press for sweeping reforms and accountability, while the international community is closely monitoring whether Bangladesh can deliver a free and fair election after years of democratic backsliding.
For now, Yunus and his interim administration appear resolute in their determination to proceed with the vote on schedule. But as recent events have shown, conspiracies, unrest and entrenched rivalries still threaten to derail the country’s fragile path towards democracy.
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