By Mohammad Shariful Alam Chowdhury
Sheikh Hasina, who was sworn in for a fifth term as Bangladesh’s Prime Minister on January 11, 2024, fled the country on August 5 following a massive nationwide uprising. Since then, her party, the Awami League, has faced increasing political and legal pressure.
On Monday, the Election Commission of Bangladesh officially canceled the registration of the Awami League, barring it from contesting the next national election, expected by June 2025. This move came just hours after the country’s interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, announced a sweeping ban on all Awami League activities both online and offline.
The Ministry of Home Affairs issued a notification outlawing all party operations under the country’s Anti-Terrorism Act. The ban includes any form of publication, campaigning, gatherings, meetings, or social media activity until the completion of a special tribunal's trial against the party and its senior leaders.
“This decision takes effect immediately,” read the government statement, which cited national security concerns.
Additionally, a senior adviser to the interim government warned that individuals expressing support for the Awami League online would face arrest.
The Awami League responded on Sunday with a strongly worded statement accusing the interim government of deepening divisions in society and undermining democracy. “This ban stokes division within society, strangles democratic norms, fuels an ongoing pogrom against dissenters, and undermines inclusivity—these are all undemocratic steps,” the party said.
Once a dominant force in Bangladeshi politics, the Awami League now finds itself marginalized. The party has accused the government of orchestrating violent attacks on its offices, supporters, and leaders. Since Hasina’s exile, many of its offices have been burned, its members arrested, and several reportedly killed.
Hasina, daughter of the country’s founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, is currently in exile in India along with senior party leaders, former Cabinet members, and lawmakers. They face charges related to the killing of protesters during the July-August 2024 uprising that led to Hasina’s ouster after a 15-year rule.
A February 2025 report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights estimated that up to 1,400 people may have been killed during the three weeks of protests. The report urged the interim government to “refrain from political party bans that would undermine a return to a genuine multi-party democracy and effectively disenfranchise a large part of the Bangladeshi electorate.”
Yunus has indicated that the next general election will likely be held in either December 2025 or June 2026.
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