Security concerns and sporadic violence overshadowed voting in Bangladesh, with turnout reaching 47.91% across 32,789 polling centres by 2 pm, according to Bangladesh’s Election Commission as cited by The Daily Star in a report.

Authorities reported multiple incidents that disrupted balloting and prompted arrests, highlighting persistent tensions between rival political groups during the election process.

Explosions involving crude devices were reported in Gopalganj and Munshiganj earlier in the day. Bangladesh’s Army later confirmed that five people were detained following a blast at a polling station in Munshiganj.

Separate enforcement action in Sherpur led to at least two arrests after more than 100 ballot papers marked in favour of the sheaf of paddy symbol were recovered from a polling centre.

According to a report by NDTV, pamphlets circulated nationally pledged payments of BDT15,000 and a promise of a sin-free afterlife to voters and their families in exchange for photographic proof of ballots in favour of Jamaat-e-Islami party leader Shafiqur Rahman.

Officials from Bangladesh’s Election Commission indicated that the ballots were allegedly collected and marked by supporters linked to an opposition group at a government primary school polling site in Sherpur district. Law enforcement agencies said the situation was contained after intervention by security personnel.

Clashes between supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami in Meherpur left a reported  23 people injured amid allegations of vote obstruction. Bangladesh’s police said officers restored order at the scene, detained several individuals connected to the confrontation and reported that voting resumed without further disruption.

The incidents underscore the fragile security environment surrounding the election and may weigh on perceptions of political stability, a factor closely watched by international observers and investors monitoring Bangladesh’s governance outlook.