The 2026 general election in Bangladesh has dramatically reshaped the country’s political landscape, with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) securing a two-thirds majority and decisively outperforming the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami.
Among those elected to Parliament are three controversial figures who had previously been sentenced to death. All three were later acquitted and released during the tenure of the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus, which took charge after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina went into exile following the 2024 political upheaval. Two of the three had faced cases linked to anti-India terror activities.
Lutfozzaman Babar
Lutfozzaman Babar, a senior BNP leader, won the Netrokona-4 constituency with over 1.6 lakh votes. He had earlier served as State Minister for Home Affairs under Prime Minister Khaleda Zia between 2001 and 2006, when the BNP-Jamaat coalition was in power.
In 2014, Babar was sentenced to death for his role in the 2004 Dhaka grenade attack that killed at least 23 people and injured hundreds. Sheikh Hasina was the intended target. He received another death sentence in 2018 in connection with the 2004 Chittagong arms smuggling case, in which 10 truckloads of weapons meant for insurgents in India’s Northeast were intercepted.
However, following Hasina’s removal from office, the Bangladesh High Court acquitted Babar in the arms smuggling case in January 2025. He was released from Keraniganj Central Jail shortly thereafter.
Abdus Salam Pintu
BNP leader Abdus Salam Pintu, who won the Tangail-2 seat with close to 2 lakh votes, also made a political comeback after years behind bars. Like Babar, he had served as a minister in Khaleda Zia’s government from 2001 to 2006.
Pintu was sentenced to death in 2016 for his involvement in the 2004 Dhaka grenade attack. He was also accused of backing the Pakistan-based militant outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI), which has been linked to terror attacks in India, including the 2006 Varanasi court blasts, the 2007 Ajmer Sharif Dargah bombing and the 2011 Delhi blasts.
He too was later acquitted by a Bangladeshi court and released in December 2025.
ATM Azharul Islam
The third figure is ATM Azharul Islam of the Jamaat-e-Islami, who won the Rangpur-2 constituency with around 1.39 lakh votes. A former secretary general of the party, he had contested multiple elections in the past and remained a prominent Jamaat leader.
In 2012, he was arrested and charged by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal for alleged war crimes during the 1971 Liberation War. He was accused of involvement in large-scale killings and sexual violence and was sentenced to death in 2014.
In May 2025, the Supreme Court acquitted him of all charges, clearing the way for his return to active politics.
The election of these three leaders underscores the sweeping political changes that have taken place in Bangladesh since the events of 2024. Once facing execution, they are now preparing to take oath as Members of Parliament — a turnaround that reflects the country’s shifting political currents.