Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina returned for a third consecutive term with a landslide victory after the election held on 30th December in Bangladesh. In a 300-seat Bangladesh Parliament, Sheikh Hasina’s party Awami League and its allies have won 288 seats while its arch-rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) was decimated as they managed to win only seven seats. Awami League’s victory has given an opportunity to the party to chart a new path for Bangladesh driven by development and strengthening democratic institutions.

BNP, the main opposition that was in power twice (1991-96 and 2001-06), claimed the votes to be rigged and termed the polls as farcical and demanded fresh elections.