Misleading claim on BNP's polls boycott circulates ahead of Bangladesh election
A video of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir’s statement about boycotting elections under the Awami League government is being misrepresented as the party’s current stance ahead of the national election.
Fakhrul made the comment in May 2022, announcing his party’s decision to stay away from polls under the Awami League government. “The BNP will not participate in any election under the current illegal government,” he said.
Dismislab fact-check found the clip was from a Jamuna TV report on YouTube, dated May 10, 2022. An edited version surfaced on Facebook on February 7, captioned: “Just in or breaking news. BNP has boycotted the election. There is no hope for a fair election in Bangladesh under this illegal government. May good sense prevail. Spread this video.”
As of the writing of this report, the video has been viewed more than 70,000 times and shared over 1,500 times. An analysis of comments on the post suggests that many believe the claim to be true. A user wrote, “Good sense has prevailed”, while another wrote, “Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has come to his senses after such a long time.”
The 47-second clip includes the name of a Jamuna TV news presenter and a Bengali caption that reads: “BNP will not go to polls under the illegal government, Mirza Fakhrul says at joint meeting.” Fakhrul clearly says his party would boycott the polls supervised by the “illegal government”.
The video was also posted from another personal profile with a similar claim, distorting the BNP leader’s comment.
A reverse image search showed the video originated from a 2:49-minute Jamuna TV report, titled: “BNP will not contest elections under the current government: Fakhrul.”
The description echoed the headline and added that Fakhrul said the government must resign first. Elections can only be held when a neutral government and a neutral Election Commission are confirmed. Fakhrul, speaking after a joint meeting in Paltan, also criticized the erstwhile prime minister’s push for electronic voting machines and accused the government of “deliberately destroying the electoral system.”
The Independent Television also reported on the issue and uploaded a video on its YouTube handle with a similar headline the same day.
While some people are misinterpreting the video to believe BNP is boycotting the February 12 national election, the claim is misleading and does not reflect the party’s current position.
Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on February 10, 2026. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
