Bangladesh’s national election campaign is intensifying, with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami emerging as the main rival forces and trading increasingly sharp political attacks just days after campaigning began. Senior leaders from both sides have addressed rallies across the country.

BNP chairperson Tarique Rahman has spoke at multiple public meetings in Dhaka and other districts, while Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman has campaigned in Dhaka’s Mirpur area and several northern districts. Speaking at a rally in Thakurgaon, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir accused Jamaat of opposing Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War and labelled the party a threat to national security, urging voters to reject what he called anti-liberation forces.

Jamaat leaders in turn have also accused the BNP of submitting to foreign influence, while the BNP has countered by alleging Jamaat’s historical allegiance to Pakistan. Meanwhile, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina has accused the interim government led by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus of undermining democracy by suspending the Awami League ahead of the February 12 general elections.