Page 24 - Sheikh Hasina

Democracy should continue in Bangladesh, says Sheikh Hasina as polls begin

"My heartfelt thanks to the people of Bangladesh. There were many obstacles but the people of our country are very much aware of their voting rights and the need for polls, PM Hasina said

Polling underway in Bangladesh amid boycott by main Opposition BNP

Bangladeshis on Sunday began voting in the general elections expected to be won by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the absence of the main Opposition BNP which is boycotting it. Voting began at 8 am local time and will continue till 5 pm. A total of 119.6 million registered voters are eligible to vote at Sunday's polls in more than 42,000 polling stations, according to the country's Election Commission. The voting is being held in 299 out of 300 constituencies. The election to one centre will be held later as a candidate died there. More than 1,500 candidates from 27 political parties are contesting in the election besides 436 independent candidates. Over 100 foreign observers, including three from India, will monitor the 12th general election, which is being held under tight security. The election commission said it expected the results to start flowing from early on January 8. Hasina, 76, has been in power since 2009 and her Awami League won the last election in December 2018.

Bangladesh to hold elections on Sunday, PM Hasina expected to win

Bangladesh will go to the polls on Sunday in which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to win a fourth straight term in the absence of the main Opposition BNP which on Saturday began a 48-hour nationwide strike against the "illegal government" amidst sporadic violence. A total of 119.6 million registered voters are eligible to vote at Sunday's polls in more than 42,000 polling stations, according to the country's Election Commission. More than 1,500 candidates from 27 political parties are contesting in the election besides 436 independent candidates. Over 100 foreign observers, including three from India, will monitor the 12th general election, which is being held under tight security. The election commission said voting will start at 8 am and will end at 5 pm. The results are expected to start flowing from early on January 8. Prime Minister Hasina's ruling Awami League is expected to win for a straight fourth time as the main Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of

Bangladesh elections 2024: Sheikh Hasina set for historic win amid boycotts and bans

Bangladesh is poised for its general elections on Sunday, an event shadowed by a sense of inevitability. The Opposition's boycott seemingly paves the way for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

Ahead of polls, Bangladesh Nationalist Party holds massive protest in Dhaka

Ahead of the general elections set to be held on January 7 in Bangladesh, the country's opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) staged a massive protest in Dhaka's Paltan area

B'desh to hold elections on Sunday; PM Hasina poised to win another term

Bangladesh will go to the polls on Sunday in which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to win a fourth straight term in the absence of the main Opposition BNP which is boycotting the elections amidst violence and has called for a 48-hour nationwide strike against the "illegal government." A total of 119.6 million registered voters are eligible to vote at Sunday's polls in more than 42,000 polling stations, according to the country's Election Commission. More than 1,500 candidates from 27 political parties are contesting in the election besides 436 independent candidates. Over 100 foreign observers, including three from India, will monitor the 12th general election, which is being held under tight security. The election commission said it expected the results to start flowing from early on January 8. Prime Minister Hasina's ruling Awami League is expected to win for a straight fourth time as the main Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of former premier Khaleda Zia,

Bangladesh's main Oppn party calls train fire 'sabotage', demands UN probe

Bangladesh's main opposition BNP has demanded a UN-supervised investigation into a fire on a passenger train that killed four persons, calling it a "pre-planned" act of sabotage ahead of the general elections being boycotted by the party. The incident happened around 9 pm on Friday when four carriages of the Benapole Express that runs from Benapole, a town bordering the Indian state of West Bengal, were set on fire as it nearly reached its destination of the capital's Kamalapur Railway Station. Railway officials said that most of the train's nearly 292 passengers were returning home from India. Shahjahan Sikder, deputy assistant director of the Fire Service and Civil Defence Media Cell, said they recovered four bodies from the gutted coaches of the train. In a statement, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) senior Joint Secretary Ruhul Kabir Rizvi expressed concern over the "heartbreaking incident of casualties due to arson by miscreants on the Benapole Express train headed from ...

Fear, panic plague Opposition in Bangladesh ahead of Jan 7 elections

The United States, the biggest buyer of Bangladesh's garments, has condemned the violence, and curbed visas for citizens of the South Asian nation believed to have a role in undermining elections

Bangladesh polls: Hasina's party manifesto pledges friendly ties with India

The reaffirmation came as she unveiled the manifesto of the ruling Awami League party on Wednesday for the upcoming general elections scheduled for January 7

Bangladesh to deploy Army to maintain order ahead of Jan 7 elections

Bangladesh Army said on Monday that it will deploy troops to maintain law and order as the country gears up for January 7 general elections that the opposition parties demand should be held under an interim non-partisan government. The Election Commission (EC) wants us (armed forces) to be deployed to stage a free and fair election in a healthy atmosphere. We ensured them of all-out support, the armed forces division's principal staff officer Lt Gen Wakar-uz-Zaman told a media briefing here. The announcement came after Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal and other commissioners met with concerned civil and military officials at the commission office. Zaman said the Army troops would be deployed across the country in aid of civil power for 13 days from December 29 and we will extend our support to the commission the way it wants. He said the armed forces deployment was not a new phenomenon as they were called out during past general elections as well but termed today's ...

Bangladesh oppn party holds protest as it boycotts Jan 7 national election

Hundreds of opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party supporters protested on Sunday to mark International Human Rights Day, as the country gears up for a general election on January 7 that the opposition says should be held under a non-partisan, caretaker government. The party, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, is boycotting the election, leaving voters in the South Asian nation of 166 million with little choice but to re-elect Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League for a fourth consecutive term. At Sunday's protest in front of the National Press Club in downtown Dhaka, opposition activists said they do not think a fair and free election can take place under Hasina's watch. The gathering took place weeks after a massive opposition rally on October 28 turned violent. The party's decision to boycott the polls comes amid a monthslong crackdown that has reportedly seen hundreds of opposition politicians jailed and critics silenced, an allegation authorities have ...

Bangladesh set to hold general elections on January 7, says EC chief

Bangladesh will hold the much-awaited general elections on January 7, the country's chief election commissioner announced on Wednesday. Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal announced the dates during an address to the nation that was telecast live. The announcement came amid mounting political tensions as Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its far-right allies like the Jamaat-e-Islami have waged a street campaign demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government to allow a non-party interim government to conduct the general elections. The ruling Awami League has dismissed the demand, saying elections would be held under Premier Hasina, who also rejected proposals for dialogue with the Opposition by the US and other major Western countries, calling BNP a terrorist organisation. Since October 28, the opposition parties have been enforcing transport blockades and clashing with police and rival activists in support of their demand. The political viole

Cambodian template for Bangladesh elections

The 2024 general election will clearly take place in an environment full of geopolitical and economic challenges, with the US seeing the China challenge in Bangladesh

Bangladesh PM Hasina appears on Time Cover, says tough to overthrow her

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has appeared on the cover page of Time magazine, in an interview asserted it is difficult to overthrow her government through a democratic system. Elections in Bangladesh are scheduled in January 2024. "I am confident that my people are with me They're my main strength It's not that easy to overthrow me through a democratic system The only option is just to eliminate me. And I am ready to die for my people," Hasina told Time magazine, according to the excerpts of the interview released by the news outlet. The November 20 edition of the magazine, which featured Hasina on cover page, will hit the stands on November 10, the New York-based outlet said. "At 76Bangladesh's Prime Minister is a political phenomenon who has guided the rise of this nation of 170 million from rustic jute producer into the Asia-Pacific's fastest-expanding economy over the past decade. "In office since 2009, after an earlier term from 1996 to 2001, she is the wor

PM Modi, Sheikh Hasina jointly inaugurate three development projects

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday jointly inaugurated three projects via virtual mode, including a key rail link between Tripura's Nischintapur and Gangasagar in the neighbouring country. The other two projects inaugurated by Modi and Hasina are the 65-km Khulna-Mongla Port Rail Line, and Unit 2 of the Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant in Bangladesh's Rampal. The 15-km Agartala-Akhaura Cross Border Rail Link is expected to boost cross-border trade and significantly reduce the travel time between Agartala and Kolkata via Dhaka. It is a matter of joy that we have connected once again to celebrate the success of the India-Bangladesh cooperation, Modi said in an interaction with Hasina over video-conferencing. In the past nine years, the work we have done together has not happened in decades, he said.

Bangladesh PM's daughter nominated as WHO's South-East Asia director

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's daughter Saima Wazed, a mental health expert, has been nominated as the next regional director of the World Health Organization's South-East Asia region. Dr Shambhu Prasad Acharya, a senior WHO official, was the other candidate. He was nominated by Nepal. The member states voted to nominate Wazed to the post during a closed meeting at the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for the South-East Asia Region. The nomination will be submitted to the WHO Executive Board during its 154th session which will take place from January 22 to 27 in Geneva, Switzerland, according to a statement from the world health body. Wazed will take office on February 1, 2024.

PM Modi, Sheikh Hasina to inaugurate cross-border rail project on Nov 1

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina will jointly inaugurate a key cross-border railway project on Wednesday, officials said. The prime ministers of the two neighbouring countries will launch the Agartala-Akhaura Cross Border Rail Link Project at 11 am in a virtual ceremony, they said. The 15-km rail link (5 km in India and 10 km in Bangladesh) will boost cross-border trade and significantly reduce the travel time between Agartala and Kolkata via Dhaka, the officials said. The trial run of the project will take place at 12 pm on Monday. It encompasses one major bridge and three minor bridges. At present, it takes about 31 hours to reach Kolkata from Agartala by train, which will be reduced to just 10 hours, an official said. The Indian Railways had allocated Rs 153.84 crore from its budget to expedite the project work, he added.

B'desh PM Hasina inaugurates largest infra project built with Chinese loan

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday inaugurated the 82-km Padma Bridge Rail Link, the country's largest infrastructure project built under China's Belt and Road Initiative. Hasina unveiled the Dhaka-Bhanga section of the rail route between Dhaka and Jashore through the Padma Bridge from Mawa Railway Station in Munshiganj. The remaining portion of the project linking Jessore is expected to be launched in June of next year, the Dhaka Tribune reported, quoting project officials. Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen, who attended the inaugural ceremony, said the Padma Bridge Rail Link is a landmark project under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and also the largest infrastructure project in Bangladesh using Chinese preferential loans. As one of the most important infrastructure projects in Bangladesh, it is estimated to directly benefit 80 million people and boost economic growth by 1.5 per cent, he claimed. The project is estimated to cost Tk 39,246.80 crore, wi

Biden to Sunak: Check when will global leaders depart from G20 Summit 2023

Centre has assigned responsibilities to Union Ministers of State to see off the foreign delegates after the summit

Finance Minister interacts with Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at G20 dinner

Bangladesh PM, who arrived in India on Friday, held a bilateral talk with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in New Delhi on the same day