The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won five seats and its
partners in the National Unity Front (NUF) got just two as compared to
258 seats of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League and 22 of her
ally Jatiya Party in the recently concluded 11th general elections.
Speaker
Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, who chaired the 10th parliament, first took
oath on her own as per parliamentary rules and then administered the
oath of office to the Awami League MPs-elect including Hasina at the
Oath Room of parliament around 11 am.
Clad in
pink and ash coloured jamdani saree, Hasina was seated in the front row,
leading the rows of "black and white" Awami League MPs-elect.
The
members of other Grand Alliance partners including former president HM
Ershad's jatiya Party, left leaning Workers Party and Jatiya
Samajtantrik Dal and centre-right Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh and Tariqat
Federation and independent lawmakers were sworn in thereafter.
The Jatiya Party has won 22 seats, becoming the second largest bloc in parliament.
The
seven MPs-elect of opposition NUF boycotted the ceremony. The NUF, with
BNP being its key partner, has rejected the election, calling it a
"farce" and demanded fresh polls under a non-party caretaker government.
Prime
Minister Hasina, however, dismissed the accusations saying the
opposition's weaknesses caused their debacle though most Western
countries cautiously welcomed her victory in the polls simultaneously
noting the opposition allegations.
Under Bangladesh's Constitutional provisions, MPs-elect must take oath within three months or forfeit their seats.
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