Politics

UK report flags slow reforms and corruption in post-uprising Bangladesh

A UK Home Office fact-finding report says political freedoms improved after the July 2024 Uprising, but points to stalled reforms, graft and weak police accountability.

ScrollBeat DeskPublished: 18 Oct 2026, 13:30

The Palace of Westminster in London, home of the UK Parliament, whose government published a fact-finding report on Bangladesh. Photo: Colin, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) Colin, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The United Kingdom has raised concerns about the slow pace of reforms, corruption and police accountability in Bangladesh since the July 2024 Uprising, in a government report that otherwise describes a calmer political climate.

The report, “Report of a Fact-Finding Mission Bangladesh: Political Situation, October 2026”, was published on the UK government website on 14 October. Three officials from the Home Office’s Country Policy and Information Team carried out the mission, interviewing people in Dhaka between 7 and 15 June.

It found that political parties, journalists, civil society organisations and human rights groups reported greater freedom to operate, express views and join public debate than under the previous Awami League government.

The BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, the National Citizen Party and other opposition groups were able to organise, campaign, protest and criticise the government, according to the report. Political violence continued but was mostly local, tied to disputes over influence, business interests, resources and political control. The February 2026 election was described as generally peaceful and far less violent than previous polls.

The report noted that the Awami League remains banned, with public hostility towards the party persisting over human rights abuses during its time in power and the events of the July 2024 protests. It said low-level supporters with no link to corruption, violence or repression could generally stay in their communities, but people who openly backed the party could face harassment, social hostility or violence.

On politically motivated cases, police sources told the mission that more than 21,000 politically motivated or false cases filed under the former government had been withdrawn, while reviews of older cases were continuing. Many Awami League politicians, activists and officials still face criminal proceedings over alleged actions during the former government and the July 2024 protests, with cases before both the International Crimes Tribunal and the ordinary courts. Some prominent figures have been freed on bail; others remain in custody awaiting trial.

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BNP to interview aspirants on 19 October for vacant women's seat

The party will hear women who bought nomination papers for the by-election to a vacant women's seat on 19 October at its Gulshan chairman's office. The Election Commission has set voting for 12 November.

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A file photo used by Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha for coverage of the BNP's nomination process for a vacant women's reserved seat in the Jatiya Sangsad. Photo: BSS BSS

The BNP will interview women seeking its nomination for the by-election to a vacant women's reserved seat in the 13th Jatiya Sangsad on 19 October, the party said in a press release signed by assistant office secretary Munir Hossain.

The interviews will be held at 7:00pm at the party chairman's political office in Gulshan, and will be attended by women who bought and submitted nomination papers, the release said.

The by-election is for a seat reserved for women that fell vacant after Ferdousi Ahmed Mishti resigned as an MP on 1 October. She had been accused of involvement in an attack, looting and vandalism at the Radda MCH-FP Centre in Dhaka's Mirpur, and resigned on the instructions of BNP chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

Under the Election Commission schedule announced on 12 October and signed by EC Secretary Akhtar Ahmed, nomination papers must be submitted to the returning officer at the Nirbachan Bhaban by 26 October. Scrutiny will be held on 27 October, the last date for withdrawal of candidacies is 1 November, and voting will take place on 12 November.

Only the BNP can nominate a candidate for the vacant seat, because reserved seats are allocated in proportion to the directly elected MPs a party has. If more than one candidate is nominated, only MPs of the BNP alliance are eligible to vote. In practice, reserved seats are usually filled by a single candidate, so a vote is often unnecessary.

NEXT STORY Bangladesh

Coast Guard seizes 8.3m metres of nets in hilsa ban crackdown

The force has stepped up river and coastal patrols in 54 upazilas during the 22-day ban on catching, selling and transporting hilsa, which runs until 29 October.

ScrollBeat Desk18 Oct 2026, 14:30Open this article

Bangladesh Coast Guard personnel patrol rivers and coastal waters to enforce the 22-day ban on hilsa fishing that runs from 8 to 29 October 2026. Photo: BSS BSS

The Bangladesh Coast Guard has stepped up patrols and drives in rivers and coastal waters to stop the catching of brood hilsa during a 22-day nationwide ban meant to let the national fish spawn safely.

The ban began on 8 October and lasts until 29 October. It bars catching, transporting, storing, marketing, buying and selling hilsa anywhere in the country.

Officials said conservation operations have been intensified in 54 upazilas across 16 districts, with stations and outposts under the Coast Guard's four zones running regular patrols. Chandpur, Shariatpur, Madaripur, Munshiganj, Barishal, Patuakhali, Bhola, Pirojpur, Jhalakathi, Bagerhat, the Chattogram outer anchorage and parts of Lakshmipur are among the areas getting particular attention.

The Coast Guard said it had seized 8.3 million metres (83,30,900 metres) of fishing nets, 155 kilogrammes of hilsa and 14 boats, and that 24 people had been brought under the law. The nets were destroyed in the presence of fisheries representatives, the confiscated hilsa was given to local orphanages, and the boats were handed to fisheries officials.

Patrol vessels are also on alert to keep fishing trawlers from neighbouring countries out of Bangladesh's territorial waters, the force said. Officials said working in remote rivers at night and stopping the use of banned nets remain the biggest challenges, and that patrols, intelligence gathering and coordination with other agencies have been strengthened.

Under a government programme, rice is being given to 646,290 fishing families in 168 upazilas across 38 districts, with each family receiving 25 kilogrammes for the duration of the ban.

Fisherman Burhan Uddin of Char Fasson in Bhola told the state news agency BSS that the restriction would help hilsa breed and grow, and welcomed the food aid for families losing income. Professor Mohammad Mamun Chowdhury, chairman of Dhaka University's fisheries department, called the ban effective but said it should run for a month rather than 22 days, because egg-bearing hilsa are still netted soon after it ends.

Enforcement has been uneven. The Daily Star reported on 12 October that illegal hilsa fishing and open sales continued along the Meghna in Barishal's Hizla and Mehendiganj upazilas, with 2,000 to 3,000 maunds traded daily in about 30 markets, and that the district fisheries office had asked for army or Coast Guard help. Officials there cited a lack of budget and the danger of night operations on the river.

Coast Guard media officer Lieutenant Commander Sabbir Alam Sujon said surveillance and drives had been strengthened to ensure safe spawning, and urged the public to report violations on the emergency number 16111.