Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has congratulated Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on becoming the 23rd president of Bangladesh, in a message sent on Friday, 21 August.
The message went further than protocol. Pezeshkian used it to signal that Tehran wants a broader working relationship with Dhaka under the new administration.
What Pezeshkian said
In his congratulatory message, the Iranian president stated that the confidence placed in Mirza Fakhrul by the members of Bangladesh’s highest legislative body reflected his forward-thinking vision, his commitment, and what Pezeshkian described as a valuable contribution to the consolidation of democracy.
He expressed his hope that the change in leadership would usher in a new chapter of stability, prosperity, and progress for the people of Bangladesh.
Pezeshkian also reiterated Iran’s intention to strengthen the long-standing fraternal ties between the two countries and affirmed that Tehran is fully committed to expanding cooperation with Bangladesh bilaterally, regionally, and internationally, according to a report published by the Dhaka Post.
The election behind the message
The message follows a week that changed the occupancy of Bangabhaban.
Mirza Fakhrul was elected to the Khatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) on Thursday, August 20. He received 255 votes. His opponent, retired Colonel Oli Ahmad, the candidate backed by an 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami, received 88 votes.
Of the 349 members of Parliament eligible to vote, 343 cast their ballots between 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., and all 343 votes were counted. The Khatiya Sangsad has 350 seats, but the vote was conducted with 349 members present due to the suspension of elections in the Chattogram-4 district. Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin oversaw the vote count and announced the results after a public tally.
Six members of Parliament did not vote. According to reports, they are BNP members Mirza Abbas and Mostafa Kamal Pasha, independent MP Rumeen Farhana, Jamaat MP Gazi Nazrul Islam, and Islami Andolan Bangladesh MP Oli Ullah.
The ballot was not secret. MPs were required to sign their names beside their chosen candidate before depositing the ballot.
The first contested race in 35 years
This was the first Bangladeshi presidential election in more than three decades to feature more than one candidate.
Since 1991, presidents had been elected unopposed. The last contested vote in parliament was held on 8 October 1991.
The elections were called following the resignation of President Mohammed Shahabuddin on July 24. The Speaker of Parliament, Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, served as interim president. According to the Constitution, a new president must be elected within 90 days of the office becoming vacant.
Mirza Fakhrul’s candidacy was announced by the BNP’s Deputy Secretary-General, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, after a meeting of the party’s National Standing Committee, following discussions with BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tariq Rahman.
Sworn in at Bangabhaban
Mirza Fakhrul took the oath of office on Friday evening at 7:30pm in the Darbar Hall of Bangabhaban. Acting Speaker Barrister Kaiser Kamal administered it.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman attended, along with Acting President Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram, Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury, cabinet members, lawmakers, foreign diplomats and senior civil and military officials.
Pezeshkian’s message arrived the same day.
Who the new president is
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is 78, and served as secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party before taking the presidency.
His political life began at Dhaka University, where he was active in the then East Pakistan Students Union and was elected its Dhaka University president during the 1969 uprising. He taught economics at Dhaka College from 1972.
He joined the BNP during the movement against the government of General Hussain Muhammad Ershad in the early 1990s, and was made president of the party’s Thakurgaon district unit in 1992. He contested the 1991 parliamentary election from Thakurgaon-1 and lost.
What the message signals
Congratulatory notes between heads of state are routine, and it would be a mistake to read too much into a single message.
It is worth noting the specificity. Pezeshkian did not merely express good wishes, but mentioned bilateral, regional, and international cooperation as areas that Iran wishes to expand. This is the language of a government that is taking a proactive stance from the outset of its new administration, rather than simply going through the motions.
Whether it produces anything concrete will depend on decisions neither government has announced yet.
Sources: Dhaka Post, Dhaka Tribune, The Business Standard, UNB via IANS, and published biographical records.
