President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have congratulated the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its leader Tarique Rahman on securing a landslide majority in Bangladesh’s national elections and receiving a mandate to form the next government.
Both leaders said they wanted to work towards strengthening “brotherly, multifaceted bilateral relations,” according to the statement.
The message followed results showing the BNP and its allies winning at least 212 of the 299 seats, based on latest counts carried by domestic TV channels. The opposition Jamaat-e-Islami and its allies won 70 seats in the Jatiya Sangsad, or House of the Nation.
In the statement, Zardari congratulated Bangladesh on the conduct of polls across 299 seats with over 127 million registered voters. He said: “Reaffirming Pakistan’s support for the sovereignty and democratic aspirations of Bangladesh, the president said Pakistan looks forward to working with the new government to strengthen cooperation in trade, defence, cultural exchanges and regional forums.”
Zardari also said the elections offered an opportunity for South Asia to move beyond phases in which regional cooperation, including within SAARC, was held hostage by India, and expressed hope for more balanced and mutually respectful engagement in the region. He conveyed best wishes for Bangladesh’s stability, progress and prosperity.
Separately, Sharif said in a post on his X account that he also congratulates the people of Bangladesh on the successful conduct of the elections. He said he looked forward to working closely with the new leadership to further strengthen the “historic, brotherly multifaceted bilateral relations” and advance shared goals of peace, stability and development in South Asia and beyond.
The development came after the BNP won a decisive two-thirds majority in elections that Business Recorder reported as expected to bring stability after months of tumult following the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in a Gen Z-led uprising.