Bangladesh voted for a government Sunday with early results showing a lead for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ruling party, putting her in position to extend her rule as the longest serving premier since the nation became independent in 1971. The opposition called it a “farcical election.”
By early evening, 17 people had been reported killed in clashes between the ruling and the opposition party workers, according to the English-language Daily Star newspaper. Bangladesh’s $250 billion economy is expanding at 7.9 percent, making it among the fastest-growing in Asia. The nation is the second-largest exporter of apparel, which accounts for 13 percent of its gross domestic product.
