Bangladesh Election: An explanation of why security concerns are raised by Jamaat's victory in areas along the Indo-Bangladesh border

"India will continue to stand in support of a democratic, progressive, and inclusive Bangladesh," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said after congratulating BNP chief Tarique Rahman on the party's resounding victory. However, India is somewhat alarmed by the Jamaat-e-Islami's success in the eastern and northeastern states of West Bengal and Meghalaya, which are adjacent to the country.

The border areas of Satkhira-1, Satkhira-2, Satkhira-3, and Satkhira-4, Sherpur-1, Naogaon-2, Joypurhat-1, Rangpur constituencies (1, 2, 3, 5, and 6), and Gaibandha-1 were won by the Jamaat-e-Islami, which has a long history of anti-Indian activities. In the 13th parliamentary election, Jamaat-e-Islami and its supporters took home 76 seats.

The top leadership of Jamaat-e-Islami maintain friendly ties with the Pakistani establishment, despite the organization's well-known anti-Indian activities. The party participated in Pakistan's military repression apparatus and opposed Bangladesh's independence during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. International criminal proceedings and tribunal records document the role played by Jamaat-affiliated collaborators, including Razakar, Al-Badr, and Al-Shams, in the killing of thousands of civilians during the Liberation War in 1971.

Jamaat leaders were persecuted and prominent individuals such as Motiur Rahman Nizami and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed were put to death under Sheikh Hasina's rule. Jamaat was placed in seclusion for ten years after the Bangladesh High Court revoked its registration in 2013. The party petitioned the Bangladesh Supreme Court for restoration after Sheikh Hasina, the country's prime minister, was overthrown in 2024, a move that experts say was a handicraft of Jamaat-e-Islami, among others. The Supreme Court of Bangladesh directed the Election Commission to resolve Jamaat-e-Islami's outstanding matters, including registration, in June 2025.

Additionally, the party was previously prohibited in 1972 following independence, a ban that lasted for seven long years before being lifted in 1979.

In the 13th parliamentary election, the BNP won by a wide margin. According to current trends, the BNP has secured 213 seats, while Jamaat and its allies have secured 71 seats. Bangladesh's Islami Andolon won one seat, while the other six were won by others. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its erstwhile ally, Jamaat-e-Islami, contested the election primarily. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League did not participate because the party has since been dissolved.

In Bangladesh, there were 299 constituencies with 127 million eligible voters, almost half of whom were between the ages of 18 and 37, and 4.57 million first-time voters. The BNP fielded 291 as the front-runner, while the banned Awami League was left out of the 1,755–1,981 candidates from 50–59 parties that competed. The BNP-Jamaat rivalry was focused on economic growth, jobs, inflation, and corruption. Muhammad Yunus's interim government's 84-point National Charter 2025 for governance reforms was put to the test in a parallel vote.