PM Hasina declares opposition party 'terrorist organisation' as Bangladesh heads to polls

Bangladesh began voting Sunday in an election guaranteed to give Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina her fifth term in office, after a boycott by opposition parties whose ranks have been decimated by mass arrests.

Hasina's government has experienced significant economic growth in a country once plagued by poverty but has been accused of human rights abuses and a ruthless opposition crackdown.

Despite having few effective rivals, Hasina's party has avoided fielding candidates in a few seats to avoid a one-party institution.

Polls are open until 5:00pm, with results expected after midnight.

Hasina's opponents have called a general strike and urged the public not to vote. Some voters say that they have been threatened with confiscation of government benefit cards if they refuse to vote for the ruling Awami League.

"They said they would seize it from me if I don't vote," Lal Mia, 64, told AFP in the central district of Faridpur. "They said since the government feeds us, we have to vote for them."

The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and other parties staged months of protests last year demanding Hasina step down ahead of the vote.

Hasina said the main party boycotting Sunday's national elections was a "terrorist organisation", adding that she was trying to ensure her country remained democratic and urging the public to cast their votes.

"The BNP is a terrorist organisation," she told waiting reporters after casting her vote moments after polls opened at the Dhaka City College, alongside her sister and daughter.

"I am trying my best to ensure that democracy should continue in this country," Hasina said. "The election will be free and fair," she added.

BNP reported that around 25,000 opposition cadres, including the entire party’s local leadership, were arrested in a crackdown, while the government estimates the number to be around 11,000.

Protests continued before the election, including a few hundred opposition supporters marching in central Dhaka.

The election commission said around 175,000 police officers and more than 515,000 members of the Ansar reserve force had been deployed to keep order during the vote.