Dhaka [Bangladesh], Dec 30 : Bangladesh is all set to choose a new representative in the Jatiya Sangshad or the unicameral legislature of the country for a period of next five years.
In the upcoming general elections, 39 registered political parties are going to participate, including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League (AL) and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) headed by former premier Begum Khaleda Zia, along with their own separate set of alliances. However, the Islamic Andolan Bangladesh will be contesting the elections as a lone political party in 292 constituencies of the total 300.
This time, around 104.2 million voters are going to exercise their franchise in 299 of the 300 constituencies across the country. Only in Jhenaidah 3 constituency, voting has been postponed to January 27, 2019 by the Bangladesh Election Commission .
With opposition parties crying foul over Hasina’s authoritarian rule, there has been a spurt of violence among the political parties, including burning down of regional offices. However, if the predictions are not, in the end, proved wrong, Hasina and her ruling Awami League are set to win a third consecutive term in power.
The incumbent Prime Minister and her supporters are in a buoyant mood not merely because they are confident of gaining a fresh five-year term in office but also because of the undeniable economic progress the government has presided over in the decade since January 2009, including massive infrastructure projects and poverty alleviation programmes.
