New Delhi, Feb. 14 -- This week's biggest headline is the elections in Bangladesh, which have brought the centre-right Bangladesh National Party (BNP) to power. The scale of the victory is striking: 212 seats out of the 300 contested directly in parliament, giving the party a clear two-thirds majority.

The polls, held on 12 February - the first since the ouster of then prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024 - recorded about 60% voter turnout, another significant marker of public participation.

The result carries added political weight because BNP leader Tarique Rahman, son of Begum Khaleda Zia (who died on 30 December 2025) and military leader Ziaur Rahman, returned home only in December 2025 after 17 years of self-imposed exile. ...