BNP’s Central Assistant Health Affairs Secretary Professor Dr. S.M. Rafiqul Islam Bachchu has won the Gazipur-3 (constituency no. 196) parliamentary seat, breaking a 47-year record. Contesting under the paddy sheaf symbol, he was declared the unofficial winner by Sripur Upazila Executive Officer and Assistant Returning Officer Barrister Sajib Ahmed at around 11:30 p.m. on Thursday. According to the unofficial results, Dr. Bachchu received 161,258 votes, while his nearest rival, Mohammad Ehsanul Haque of the Jamaat alliance and a central Shura member of Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish, secured 99,354 votes.

Historical records show that the BNP last won this seat in 1979, when the party’s then treasurer, Chowdhury Tanvir Ahmed Siddiqui from Kaliakoir, was elected under the same symbol. Since then, the seat had been held alternately by candidates from the Jatiya Party and the Awami League.

With this victory, the BNP has reclaimed the Gazipur-3 constituency after nearly half a century, marking a significant political milestone for the party in the region.