As Bangladesh heads into its 13th Jatiya Sangsad elections, glaring gender disparities have come under the spotlight.
Out of 2,568 candidates contesting, only 109 are women just over four per cent raising concerns among women’s rights activists about the country’s commitment to gender representation in politics.
The issue was sharply criticised at a press conference organised by the Forum for Women’s Political Rights at the Dhaka Reporters Unity, where speakers accused political parties of treating women’s participation as symbolic rather than democratic necessity.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission was also criticized for failing to enforce existing commitments.
Representative File Photo: BNP Acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman receives a warm welcome on his arrival in the Bangladeshi capital, weeks ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections, in Dhaka, Thursday, December 25, 2025.
