Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has been elected President of Bangladesh after securing 255 votes in the presidential election, according to the Election Commission.
In the presidential election, retired Colonel Oli Ahmed, the candidate of an alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, received 88 votes. Mirza Fakhrul therefore defeated his rival by a margin of 167 votes to secure the presidency.
AMM Nasir Uddin, the Chief Election Commissioner and election officer for the presidential election, announced the result following three hours of voting at the Jatiya Sangsad on August 21. Voting ended at 5:00pm, after which the ballots were counted.
All 349 members of parliament cast their votes in the presidential election. Three transparent ballot boxes were used, with 343 of the 349 issued ballot papers being used and the remaining six left unused, according to the Election Commission.
All 343 used ballots were declared valid, with no invalid ballots recorded. Election officer AMM Nasir Uddin said four ballot papers were replaced in accordance with Article 10 of the Presidential Election Act, 1991.
Three election commissioners and the Election Commission secretary were present during the voting and counting process.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is a senior leader of the BNP and has played an important role in party and government affairs during Bangladesh’s current period of political transition. His victory in the presidential election is also considered a significant political achievement for the BNP.
As the President is elected by members of parliament, the election result also reflects the balance of political forces and alliances within the Jatiya Sangsad. In the election, BNP candidate Mirza Fakhrul secured the majority of votes, while Oli Ahmed, representing the alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami, finished second.
According to the election results, Mirza Fakhrul received 255 of the 343 valid votes cast, securing more than 74 percent of the total valid ballots. Oli Ahmed received 88 votes, leaving him well behind his rival.
The election result marks a significant development in Bangladesh’s political landscape and reflects the BNP’s influence and the relative strength of political forces within parliament.
Source: The Daily Star.
