Bangladesh election results: What BNP’s win means for India | India News

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won a landslide victory in the country’s first parliamentary election since a deadly 2024 coup that forced the then prime minister. Sheikh Hasina from officeThe BNP is led by 60-year-old Tariq Rahman, its prime ministerial candidate, who returned to Bangladesh in December after spending 17 years in self-imposed exile in London. He is the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who died last December.The contest was essentially a two-way contest between the BNP and an 11-party alliance led by Islami Jamaat-e-Islami, a conservative religious party whose growing political influence has raised concerns, particularly among women and minority communities.New Delhi signaled its readiness to engage with the incoming government as an immediate acknowledgment of Dhaka’s political shift.Prime Minister sends his greetings on X (formerly Twitter). Narendra Modi He said, “I extend my warmest congratulations to Mr. Tariq Rahman for leading the BNP to a decisive victory in the Bangladesh parliamentary elections. This victory shows the confidence of the people of Bangladesh in your leadership. India will continue to support a democratic, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh. I look forward to working with you to further strengthen our multifaceted development and our common development goals relationship.”“The Prime Minister also spoke to Rahman and expressed the country’s continued commitment to peace, progress and prosperity for the people of both countries.“Delighted to speak with Mr. Tariq Rahman. I congratulate him for his remarkable victory in the Bangladesh elections.BNP thanked India and Prime Minister Modi for recognizing the Bangladesh general election verdict and hoped that bilateral relations would strengthen under the new government.What does BNP’s victory mean for India?One of the most important geopolitical challenges facing the new administration is rebuilding relations with India. Under Sheikh Hasina, New Delhi was Dhaka’s closest strategic partner. However, relations deteriorated sharply after his ouster, with tensions becoming more visible in recent months.BNP’s past history with IndiaBNP’s previous tenures (1991-96 and 2001-06) were marked by periodic friction with New Delhi.Diplomatic relations reached a particularly low point during 2001–06, when the BNP ruled in coalition with the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami. Indian officials have accused the BNP-led government of failing to crack down on anti-India insurgent groups operating from Bangladeshi territory. Concerns peaked in 2004 when a large cache of arms belonging to the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) was seized in Chittagong.In contrast, India has invested heavily in its partnership with Sheikh Hasina over the past 15 years, viewing her government as a reliable partner in security cooperation and regional stability.What Tariq Rahman said about IndiaDespite the historical baggage, Tariq Rahman has recently adopted a pragmatic tone. The theory was introduced in the BNP’s 2026 election manifesto under the slogan “Bangladesh first”: “Friends, yes; Masters, no.”In an interview with The Guardian, Rahman acknowledged that relations with India had deteriorated after Hasina’s removal but stressed his desire for a “relationship of mutual respect and mutual understanding”.Asked if full normalization is possible while India continues to grant asylum to Sheikh Hasina—whose extradition the BNP has formally sought—Rahman cautiously replied, “It depends. It should be on them too.”Hindu minorityThe security of minorities, especially the Hindu community, is a sensitive and closely watched issue in bilateral relations. In the months following Hasina’s ouster in August last year, there have been several incidents of violence targeting minorities.India responded strongly. “Persistent hostility by extremists against minorities including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists in Bangladesh is a matter of grave concern,” New Delhi said.“More than 2,900 incidents of violence against minorities, including cases of murder, arson and land grabbing during the interim government, have been documented by independent sources. These incidents cannot be brushed aside as mere media exaggeration or dismissed as political violence,” the MEA spokesperson added.Infiltration and Border SecuritySecuring the long and porous Indo-Bangladesh border is one of the most sensitive issues between the two countries. Illegal cross-border migration is being politically charged in border states like West Bengal and Assam.The BNP’s manifesto pledged to take a “tough stand” to stop alleged “border killings” by India’s Border Security Force (BSF) and to stop what it described as “push-ins” of individuals by the Indian side without due legal process.Water distribution and Teesta issueBangladesh shares 54 rivers with India, making river diplomacy a focus of bilateral engagement. BNP’s manifesto lays significant emphasis on ensuring “fair share” of water from transboundary rivers like Teesta and Padma.The party has indicated that it may pursue the China-backed Teesta River Master Plan – an initiative opposed by New Delhi due to concerns about Chinese involvement near the strategically sensitive Siliguri Corridor.Additionally, the 1996 Ganga Water Treaty is up for renewal this year.Ultimately, the BNP’s decisive return to power represents an important geopolitical shift in South Asia. For New Delhi, the phase of relying mainly on a political leadership in Dhaka is over, replaced by the need to employ a more assertive and politically independent administration.