Just 40% voting in Bangladesh Parliamentary polls
Sheikh Hasina is set to return to power for a fourth straight term in office as early results point to sweeping victory for her party, Awami League, in the parliamentary elections. The polls were boycotted by the main Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
India's close partner in the eastern neighbourhood went to polls on Sunday. Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal said the 12th Jatiya Sangsad elections were held almost peacefully, with around 40% voter turnout.
After casting her vote, Hasina praised India-Bangladesh partnership and recalled how she was assisted by New Delhi following assassination of her father and the then President Sheikh Mujib and the entire family.
India has huge stakes in Bangladesh that has allowed cross-border connectivity initiatives under Hasina's rule, giving New Delhi access to the landlocked northeast via the Bay of Bengal. Several cross-border power and trade initiatives have been launched. India has also allowed power to be transferred to Bangladesh from Nepal and Bhutan and ramped up defence partnership.
India will be keeping a close watch on China's attempts to make inroads into the Bangladesh economy given its market size, growing middle class and its geography. Observers pointed out that the Hasina government must continue its policy of zero tolerance against radicals and extremists.
