Tasnim Jara, a 31-year-old doctor, returned from Britain to join Bangladesh's National Citizens' Party (NCP) but later quit over its alliance with Islamist groups. She is now contesting the parliamentary elections as an independent, driven by what she describes as a desire to build a "genuinely new political culture".
Jara said the July uprising had "opened a window" for people like her to enter politics and help reshape the system. That optimism, she said, dimmed when the NCP aligned itself with Islamist forces.
As voting concluded in Bangladesh's 13th parliamentary elections on Thursday, Jara told NDTV why this election matters to her and why it compelled her to return home.
One of the most talked-about candidates in this election, Jara's journey from the UK back to the bylanes of Dhaka has drawn wide attention.
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She said two factors pushed her into electoral politics. First, while her work as a doctor allows her to help many people, she believes it does not enable her to change the system itself. She wants to pursue lasting reforms in healthcare, education and governance. Second, she said she wants to challenge a political culture dominated by nepotism and corruption and replace it with transparency and accountability.
Jara said there is strong public enthusiasm for a different kind of politics, reflected in the response to her people-powered campaign. A campaign without large rallies or posters plastered across the city. She said voters connected with her door-to-door outreach and personal engagement.
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She added that the campaign holds particular significance for young Bangladeshis, as the election follows an uprising led largely by young people and women and marked by considerable sacrifice.
"We must make sure that we rebuild our institutions, and we never have to go back to a structure where authoritarianism can only be removed by people risking their lives or limbs," she said.
Jara is contesting as an independent candidate from Dhaka-9, where she faces stiff competition from BNP candidate Habibur Rashid. The constituency has 469,360 registered voters, with 12 candidates in the fray.
