Bangladesh Election: Two Hindus among four minority MPs elected as BNP secures big win

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) achieved a historic victory in the 13th national parliamentary elections , ending two decades of dominance by Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League . The BNP won 209 of 297 declared seats , securing 49.97 % of the vote, while the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami emerged as the main opposition with 68 seats , its strongest performance in decades. The National Citizen Party (NCP) captured six seats, and independents and smaller parties filled the remainder. Voter turnout was approximately 59.4 % , reflecting widespread engagement across the country.

A landmark feature of this election was the election of four MPs from religious and ethnic minority communities . Goyeshwar Chandra Roy , elected from Dhaka-3 , is a senior BNP leader and veteran politician, born in Keraniganj, Dhaka, in 1951. He has served as Minister of State for Environment and Forests and Minister of State for Fisheries and Livestock, and is a long-standing member of BNP’s standing committee, the party’s top policy-making body. Roy secured over 99,000 votes, defeating the Jamaat-e-Islami candidate, marking a significant victory for minority representation.

Nitai Roy Chowdhury , elected from Magura-2 , is a senior BNP leader and Vice Chairman of the central committee, where he advises top leadership and shapes party strategy. Born in 1949 in Magura District, he is a former Minister of Youth and Sports and a practicing lawyer. Chowdhury won comfortably with 147,896 votes, defeating his rival by a significant margin. His daughter, Nipun Roy Chowdhury, is also active in BNP leadership, reflecting the family’s strong political influence.

The other two minority MPs are Saching Pru , a Buddhist representing the Marma ethnic community in Bandarban , and Dipen Dewan , from the Chakma ethnic minority, elected from Rangamati . Both bring tribal and ethnic voices to the national legislature, strengthening minority representation in Bangladesh’s parliament.

Across the elections, 79 candidates from religious and ethnic minority communities contested, including 10 women. The Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) fielded the largest number of minority candidates (17), while the Jatiya Party and other smaller parties also included minority nominees. Notably, the Jamaat-e-Islami, which opposed Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, nominated a Hindu candidate, Krishna Nandi , in Khulna-1 for the first time, though he lost to the BNP candidate. The NCP, a youth-led party formed after the 2024 student protests, won six seats, asserting itself as a rising political force.

The elections were held alongside a national referendum, which passed with 68 % approval, strengthening term limits and judicial independence. The BNP’s alliance strategy had mixed results, but the polls brought in 99 first-time MPs, including young and second-generation leaders. The newly elected MPs will take their oaths on 17 February 2026 at the Parliament building, with the Tarique Rahman-led cabinet sworn in later at the South Plaza, administered by President Mohammed Shahabuddin. Diplomatic representatives from 13 countries, including India and China, are expected to attend. Post-election reactions highlighted political divides: Sheikh Hasina called the polls a “pre-planned election of deception and farce,” while Jamaat-e-Islami celebrated its gains but condemned post-poll violence. Tarique Rahman pledged to restore institutions, law and order, and revive the economy, receiving congratulations from international leaders including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and goodwill gestures from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.