The Election, as Told Through Praise and Smear
The schedule for Bangladesh’s 13th National Parliamentary Election and referendum was announced on December 11, with voting set for February 12, 2026. Since then, the campaign season has unfolded not only through rallies, statements, and nominations, but also through a growing stream of misinformation. Much of it is less concerned with persuading voters than with shaping the story of who holds momentum and who does not.
Over the past month, these false claims have tended to fall into two familiar categories. Some have worked to cast political parties in a favorable light, attributing to them popularity, legitimacy, or international recognition. Others have moved in the opposite direction, seeking to discredit rivals through fabricated quotes, distorted videos, or invented scandals. Most of this activity has centered on three parties: the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, and the National Citizen Party. The Awami League, whose political activities have been banned, has not been absent from this ecosystem; misinformation linked to the party has also circulated, almost all of it portraying continued public support.
Between November 16 and December 15, nine Bangladesh-based fact-checking organizations identified and debunked 63 election-related false claims. In the preceding weeks, from October 16 to November 15, the total stood at 50, an increase of roughly 26 percent. The volume is notable, but so is the consistency of form: false statements and quotes have been the most common device, attributed variously to party leaders, political activists, interim government advisers, foreign heads of government, and, increasingly, to AI-generated “ordinary citizens.”
Misinformation has also followed the mechanics of the campaign itself. Candidate nominations and early campaign activity have become points of distortion, alongside broader claims questioning whether the election would take place at all.
Manufacturing Approval
Much of the misinformation used to glorify political parties focused on Jamaat-e-Islami and the Awami League. Several false claims portrayed Jamaat-e-Islami as enjoying international recognition or imminent political success.
In one case, a fabricated photocard designed to resemble Banglavision, a television channel, falsely claimed that Jamaat-e-Islami’s Nayeb-e-Ameer, Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher, had received a phone call from the United Nations secretary-general regarding the referendum. Another manipulated photocard, falsely attributed to NTV, claimed that ambassadors from 13 countries had said Jamaat-e-Islami would form the next government.
Similar misinformation circulated using fake photocards of the newspaper Amar Desh. One falsely quoted Barrister Asaduzzaman Fuad, general secretary of the Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party, as saying that Jamaat-e-Islami would form the government while the BNP remained inactive. Another falsely attributed a statement to Shahjahan Chowdhury, a central committee member of Jamaat-e-Islami and former lawmaker, claiming that all ISKCON votes would go to Jamaat-e-Islami. Fact-checking reports found both claims to be fabricated.
Separately, a video circulated on Facebook and YouTube showing what appeared to be a police officer discussing an election survey. In the video, he claims that the BNP would win 40 seats, Jamaat-e-Islami 190 seats, and the National Citizen Party 20 seats, adding that the rule of the Quran would begin as early as next February. Fact-checkers found no evidence that police had conducted or released such a survey and said the video was generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
Misinformation has also circulated to promote the Awami League, whose activities have been banned. Several claims cited fabricated surveys or reports to suggest the party remains popular. One video falsely claimed that 75 percent of Bangladeshis support the Awami League, attributing the figure to a survey by the U.S. broadcaster Voice of America. Fact-checkers found that the video was AI-generated and that the claim did not reflect the broadcaster’s survey findings.
In another instance, a claim citing a recent Reuters report said nearly half of Bangladesh’s voters still support the Awami League under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina. Fact-checking reports found that the claim did not originate from Reuters.
Misinformation also portrayed minority voters showing continued support for the Awami League. One Facebook photocard falsely claimed that 57,000 Hindu voters had said they would not go to polling stations unless the Awami League participated in the election. Fact-checking reports found the claim to be false. Another video made a similar claim, stating that 100,000 members of the Hindu community in Jhenaidah would boycott voting unless the Awami League was on the ballot. The video was manipulated using artificial intelligence (AI).
Donald Trump, the president of the United States, was not spared. A video claimed that he had said Bangladesh’s upcoming election must be held with the participation of all political parties, including the Awami League. However, this video, as well, was AI-generated.
One appeared to favor the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). A photocard falsely quoted BNP leader Shama Obaid as saying that if Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of BNP became prime minister, rape would end in Bangladesh. Fact-checkers found she made no such comment; the quote originated on a satirical page and later escaped satire to circulate as a genuine political claim.
Smear as Strategy
Misinformation was also used to discredit political parties and BNP appeared to be a frequent target. One widely circulated AI-generated video showed what appeared to be a police officer claiming that Tarique Rahman had promised greater privileges if the BNP came to power. The AI-generated video was presented as a real statement.
Several posts falsely attributed remarks to Mahmudur Rahman, editor of the daily Amar Desh, claiming that he said the BNP lacked public support and was seeking to come to power through theft and robbery. Another falsely claimed that a secret deal had been reached in London involving Dr Muhammad Yunus and Tarique Rahman under which Dr. Yunus would help hand power to the BNP by seizing polling centers, manipulating results, and declaring defeated candidates as winners. Fact-checkers could not trace either claim to any verified interview, speech, or publication.
Misinformation also targeted other BNP leaders by linking them to claims about the Awami League’s participation in the election. A fake photocard using the Jamuna TV logo falsely quoted BNP standing committee member Salahuddin Ahmed as saying the Awami League could return to politics by aligning with the BNP. Another, styled to resemble Bangladesh Pratidin, falsely quoted BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir that he had said BNP would boycott the election if the Awami League did not take part.
Discrediting narratives also targeted Jamaat. In one case, a fake photocard mimicking the Amar Desh falsely claimed that Dr Shafiqul Islam Masud, secretary of Jamaat-e-Islami’s Dhaka Metropolitan South unit, had warned that those who did not vote for the party’s electoral symbol, the “Daripalla” (balance scale), would not be allowed to live in peace.
Other claims distorted speeches by Jamaat chief Dr Shafiqur Rahman. One edited video falsely portrayed him as saying, “Whether people vote or not, we must come to power,” by stitching together unrelated clips to create a misleading narrative. Another post, shared from an Indian account on X, falsely claimed that he had called for genocide during Bangladesh’s election.Fake photocards resembling the daily Kaler Kantho circulated with false claims, including that Jamaat would not contest the election unless a deputy prime minister was appointed from the opposition and that the party would deploy five armed Shibir cadres at every polling station.
Posts on Facebook, with an edited photo, falsely showed Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) Vice President Sadik Kayem campaigning while holding a Pakistani flag. In another post, an image of Barrister Arman, a Jamaat-e-Islami candidate in the Dhaka-14 constituency, was digitally altered using AI to replace the Bangladeshi flag in his hand with a Pakistani flag.
The National Citizen Party (NCP) was a target as well. One quote attributed to writer and activist Mohammad Ishrak, falsely claimed that the party opposed the election because it feared dissolution once voting took place. Ishrak made no such comment.
Nominations, Real and Otherwise
As the election draws closer, candidate nominations have become another front for misinformation. Fabricated documents, false announcements, and recycled images circulated widely, often appearing credible enough to mislead both voters and newsrooms.
In one case, a document resembling official BNP letterhead, circulated on social media as the party’s final list of nominees for the Sylhet division. The list carried a signature of senior joint secretary general Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi. The document was later found to be fabricated. A Facebook post claimed that singer Kanak Chapa, a member of the BNP’s Sirajganj district unit, had received the party’s nomination for the Sirajganj-1 constituency. Several media outlets repeated the claim before it was found to be false.
Krishna Nandi, president of the Jamaat’s Dumuria Upazila Hindu Committee, was nominated for the Khulna-1 constituency. As his nomination was announced, an image spread claiming that violent clashes had erupted between rival Jamaat factions. The image was later identified as an old photograph from an unrelated clash between BNP and Jamaat supporters in Rajshahi.
NCP was also a target. One post alleged that Nafsin Mehanaz Azireen, a North South University student active in the July uprising, had received NCP-nomination from Dhaka-19. Others targeted Manzur Quader, an NCP nominee in Sirajganj-5, falsely alleging that he had seized Dhanmondi Club during the Awami League’s tenure and renamed it as “Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club,” in favour of the ruling family.
Beyond nominations, other election-related misinformation included claims that no election would take place and that the military would assume power, as well as false reports that BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia had fallen ill and that Tarique Rahman or Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus had called for the election to be postponed.
All of these claims were later found to be false.
This report was produced with the financial support of the European Union within the framework of the AHEAD Bangladesh project. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Digitally Right and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.
