1985 Bangladeshi military rule referendum

none February 2026 Do you support the policies of President Ershad, and do you want him to continue to run this administration until a civilian government is formed through elections? Bangladesh 21 March 1985 32661233 1911281 47910964 1977 1977 Bangladeshi presidential confidence referendum 1991 1991 Bangladeshi constitutional referendum thumb | right | alt=Hussain Muhammad Ershad, President of Peoples's Republic of Bangladesh. | Hussain Muhammad Ershad, President of People's Republic of Bangladesh. A referendum on military rule was held in Bangladesh on 21 March 1985 to seek public approval for the continuation of military rule under Lieutenant General Hussain Muhammad Ershad, who had seized power in a bloodless coup in 1982.https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-03-22-mn-29765-story.html President Far Ahead in Bangladesh Voting : Ershad Reported on Way to Landslide Victory in Referendum; Opposition Calls Vote a Farce Tempest Rone 22 March 1985 en 3 January 2025 Los Angeles Times https://web.archive.org/web/20251125135602/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-03-22-mn-29765-story.html 25 Nov 2025 live The referendum asked voters "Do you support the policies of President Ershad, and do you want him to continue to run this administration until a civilian government is formed through elections?" The result saw 94% vote in favour with a turnout of 72%.Dieter Nohlen Dieter Nohlen Florian Grotz Christof Hartmann 2001 Elections in Asia: A data handbook I 534 0-19-924958-X The opposition organised a general strike on the day of the referendum, and alleged that the results were fraudulent. Background In 1982, a coup d'état led by Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Hussain Muhammad Ershad overthrew democratically elected president Abdus Sattar, suspended the Constitution and imposed martial law. Parliament was dissolved and all political parties were banned. Ershad appointed Justice A. F. M. Ahsanuddin Chowdhury as President on 27 March 1982, a position which he held until December 1983 when Ershad assumed the presidency himself.Stevens William 12 December 1983 Bangladesh Leader in Military Regime Assumes Presidency https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/12/world/bangladesh-leader-in-military-regime-assumes-presidency.html live https://web.archive.org/web/20250603144911/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/12/world/bangladesh-leader-in-military-regime-assumes-presidency.html 3 Jun 2025 The New York Times In 1983 Ershad promised to hold presidential elections in May 1984 and to restore parliamentary government the following year. However, neither elections were held within the stated time. Amid increasing opposition from the general public, Ershad aimed to legitimise his regime by holding a referendum in March 1985.21 Mar 1985 Bangladesh holds referendum on military rule https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/03/21/Bangladesh-holds-referendum-on-military-rule/2820480229200/ live https://web.archive.org/web/20241130084217/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/03/21/Bangladesh-holds-referendum-on-military-rule/2820480229200/ 30 Nov 2024 29 December 2018 UPI en Voters were asked "Do you support the policies of President Ershad, and do you want him to continue to run this administration until a civilian government is formed through elections?" The opposition organised a general strike on the day of the referendum. Results The official result of the referendum was overwhelmingly in support of his regime, which saw 94.5% vote in favour, with a turnout of 72.2%. However, there were allegations of large-scale vote rigging, and a 2000 report by the Bangladesh Institute of Parliamentary Studies noted that "many local and foreign observers found the figure inflated and claimed that the turnout was not more than 15 to 20 percent."Liton Shakhawat 28 August 2010 Ershad's desperate bids go in vain https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-152587 live https://web.archive.org/web/20251119193855/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-152587 19 Nov 2025 29 December 2018 The Daily Star en 32661233 1911281 47910964 Nohlen et al. Aftermath Parliamentary elections were held on 7 May 1986, which saw a victory for Ershad's newly formed Jatiya Party. However the result was controversial, with a British team of observers terming the elections a "tragedy for democracy" and a "cynically frustrated exercise". Subsequently, presidential elections were held on 15 October 1986, which were boycotted by all major opposition party candidates, allowing Ershad a landslide victory amid reports of electoral irregularities. In November 1986, Parliament passed the seventh constitutional amendment bill, protecting Ershad and his regime from prosecution for actions taken under the years of military rule. Martial law was subsequently lifted on 11 November.Weintraub Richard 11 November 1986 Martial Law Ends in Bangladesh https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/11/11/martial-law-ends-in-bangladesh/2be0301b-5fc2-4e63-93d8-ff368b939a3b/ live https://web.archive.org/web/20251212071805/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/11/11/martial-law-ends-in-bangladesh/2be0301b-5fc2-4e63-93d8-ff368b939a3b/ 12 Dec 2025 29 December 2018 The Washington Post en-US 0190-8286 In July 1987 the opposition parties united in opposition to government policies. Ershad declared a state of emergency in November, dissolved Parliament in December, and held parliamentary elections in March 1988. All major political parties refused to participate resulting in a victory for the Jatiya Party of Ershad. In 1988 Parliament passed the controversial eighth amendment to the Constitution, which made Islam the state religion,7 March 2016 After 28 years, Bangladesh revives case to drop Islam as state... https://www.reuters.com/article/bangladesh-islam-state-idUSKCN0W91XJ live https://web.archive.org/web/20230404050619/https://www.reuters.com/article/bangladesh-islam-state-idUSKCN0W91XJ 4 April 2023 29 December 2018 Reuters en in contravention of the original secular nature of the Constitution. In 1990 a popular mass uprising led by future Prime Ministers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina led to Ershad resigning from the Presidency,6 December 1990 WORLD: Ershad Resigns in Bangladesh https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-12-06-mn-8405-story.html live https://web.archive.org/web/20251127044126/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-12-06-mn-8405-story.html 27 Nov 2025 Los Angeles Times and the country returning to parliamentary democracy, with the Office of the President becoming a largely ceremonial one. References Category:Referendums in Bangladesh Bangladesh Military Category:Military reform referendums Category:Election and referendum articles with incomplete results Category:Hussain Muhammad Ershad