TDS Desk:

Tarique Rahman, chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, said today that his party would accept the outcome of the 13th parliamentary election if it proves to be “fair, impartial and uncontentious”, adding he remains confident of victory.

Speaking after casting his vote at the Gulshan Model School and College polling centre in Dhaka, Rahman told reporters BNP expected all parties to recognise a credible result. “If the election is fair, impartial and uncontentious, then it’ll certainly be accepted. All parties will accept it,” he said.

But the BNP leader, contesting two constituencies in his debut parliamentary election, signalled his party would reject what it viewed as irregularities. “The undesirable incidents that are being seen, alongside efforts to mislead people — these matters won’t be accepted,” he said.

Rahman noted that according to news reports, “many undesirable incidents” had occurred overnight, and called on law-enforcement agencies to continue their sustained efforts to ensure peaceful voting.

Describing voter enthusiasm as “very high”, the BNP chairman said: “As far as I have seen in Dhaka city, Alhamdulillah, people are going to exercise their voting right with great excitement.” He said he had not yet received full reports from across the country five hours after polls opened.

Asked whether the day marked the culmination of a 17-year movement, Tarique Rahman replied: “This isn’t just the success of our movement. This is a memorable day for all those who have been deprived of voting for 17 years.”

“Alhamdulillah, we are confident about victory. We want to run the country together, with everyone — more or less,” he said.