Four people also killed in suspected arson attack on a train, which police say was aimed at scaring people before vote

Polling booths have been set on fire in Bangladesh on the eve of general elections.

On Friday four people, including two children, died in an apparent arson attack on a train in Bangladesh. Police said they had arrested seven people in connection with the incident.

The election has been branded a ‘sham’ designed to cement Hasina’s rule by exiled opposition leader Tarique Rahman

An opposition boycott looks set to usher prime minister Sheikh Hasina to a fourth straight term in the Bangladesh election this weekend.

The election has been described as a “sham” designed to cement Hasina’s rule by exiled opposition leader Tarique Rahman.

Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League party are seeking a fourth consecutive term and are accused of harassing the rival BNP party

In Bangladesh, there is no more room left in the prisons. In the last two weeks alone, almost 10,000 opposition leaders, supporters and activists have been arrested after protests broke out against the ruling government, led by the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina.

Thousands of other political prisoners have already been inside these cells for months, many facing dozens, perhaps hundreds, of criminal charges. Rajshahi central jailhas a capacity of about 4,000 prisoners. It now holds more than 13,600.

The opposition is demanding the resignation of prime minister Sheikh Hasina and the transfer of power to a non-partisan caretaker government

Authorities in Bangladesh have arrested a key opposition figure from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and sent him to prison after a nationwide strike led to violent clashes with security forces.

Media reports said at least three civilians died in the violence, which included an arson attack in the nation’s capital, Dhaka, on Sunday. Dozens of others were injured during the strike.