Topic summary

February 1996 Bangladeshi general election

February 1996 Bangladeshi general election

General elections were held in Bangladesh on 15 February 1996. They were boycotted by most opposition parties, and saw voter turnout drop to just 21%. The result was a victory for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which won 278 of the 300 directly elected seats. This administration was short-lived, however, only lasting 12 days before the installation of caretaker government and fresh elections held in June.

The elections were characterized by violence, as well as boycotts by major opposition parties.