Seven women candidates elected to Bangladesh parliament

Seven women candidates, majority of them from the BNP, have been elected to Bangladesh parliament in the 13th national election, a media report said Friday. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which is set to form the government with an absolute majority, has seen six of its female nominees win their respective seats, The Dhaka Tribune said quoting unofficial results. The BNP women candidates are Afroza Khan Rita from Manikganj-3, Israt Sultana Elen Bhutto from Jhalokati-2, Tahsina Rushdir Luna from Sylhet-2, Shama Obaid from Faridpur-2, Nayab Yusuf Kamal from Faridpur-3, and Farzana Sharmin Putul from Natore-1, it said. In addition, Barrister Rumin Farhana, who had previously been expelled from the BNP, has been elected as an independent candidate from Brahmanbaria-2. The results are based on unofficial tallies announced after the conclusion of voting and counting across the country, the newspaper said. The BNP had fielded only 10 female candidates among 300 constituencies in the polls. With more than 151 seats in the 300-seat parliament, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is cruising towards a sweeping victory in the landmark parliamentary polls held on Thursday, local media reports said. The Jamaat-e-Islami, leading an 11-party alliance, is heading or winning in around 75 seats, media reports said at around noon. A total of 59.44 per cent of voters exercised their franchise in the parliamentary polls and referendum, the Election Commission confirmed on Friday. The country's national legislature comprises 350 members, of which 300 are elected directly while an additional 50 seats are reserved for women. Incidentally, it was Bangladesh's first election in decades without a female leader in the leading position. Deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina's party Awami League is barred from contesting, and her arch-rival Khaleda Zia died in December after a prolonged illness. The two women had dominated the country's politics for about four decades. Nearly 127 million voters were registered to cast their ballots, including five million first-time voters, across 42,779 polling centres in 299 out of 300 constituencies nationwide. The election in one constituency was cancelled due to the death of a candidate.