Was there corruption in the Bangladesh election?

An alliance led by Sheikh Hasina, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, is close to winning an election in the country’s first general election in seven years, according to reports. However, reporting from South Asia, the BBC reports that top party members are surprised by the landslide results of Awami’s League victory … and the rivaling party is reportedly complaining that voters "were turned away from polling stations in many places."

Even the Awami party’s leaders seem stunned.

"We were certainly expecting victory, but perhaps not as big as this," said Abul Mal Abdul Muhith, a senior Awami League leader told the BBC.

Voter turnout was at a surprising high after two years of emergency rule imposed by the military government, according to the BBC. Nearly 70 percent of the 80 million eligible voters reportedly cast their ballots. And election officials say Hasina’s Awami League alliance has won more than 250 of the 300 seats in Parliament. Their top rival, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, has won just 30. That’s the same party that won the election in an overwhelming victory in 2001. Now, the Associated Press is reporting from Bangladesh that BNP supporters are filing a complaint  of corruption at the polls.

The AP writes:

Rizvi Ahmed, a senior official in the party led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, said it would challenge the result later Tuesday. Ahmed said there were incidents of ballot-rigging and forgery at 220 polling stations, including election officials registering fake votes. He also accused police of pressuring people to vote for Hasina’s candidates and said his party has lodged formal complaints with the Election Commission.

Reuters reports (via video) that Hasina supporters praised the election and cheered as results poured in.

So, whether it was voter fraud or losers unaccepting of the results, the final outcome has yet to be announced. Meanwhile, this hasn’t stopped the Prime Minister of India from congratulating Hasina and saying he looks forward to working with her. "I am confident that under your leadership Bangladesh will attain even greater heights," India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is quoted as saying, according to the Press of India.

Hasina, 61, is scheduled to hold a post-election press conference Wednesday, which was originally scheduled for today, reports the Press of India. If appointed, she will be at the helm of a country of an estimated 140 million people, who are faced with widespread poverty, political corruption and social unrest. Click here to read more about her.