Bangladesh in poll position

The exercise complicates geopolitics for India, the US & China

In less than a month, Bangladesh goes to the polls to elect members of the 350-member Parliament, or Jatiya Sangsad. The expectation is that Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s Awami League will return for an unprecedented fourth term. This could be seen as a vote of confidence for Sheikh Hasina, whose 14-year stint as Prime Minister has undoubtedly made Bangladesh, despite Covid-related economic woes, a case study in poverty reduction and development. From being one of the world’s poorest nations at independence in 1971, Bangladesh is likely to head out of the list of Least Developed Countries by 2026, with poverty declining