Bangladesh's newly-elected politicians have taken their parliamentary oath after an election condemned by critics as a farce and with feuding political leaders still locked in a deadly confrontation.
Led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, members of parliament from the ruling Awami League and politicians from her allies were sworn in, parliament's spokesman Joynal Abedin told AFP on Thursday.
"Of the 300 lawmakers, 284 have taken the oath today. Others will be sworn in later," Abedin said.
The Awami League won nearly 80 per cent of the seats in Sunday's walkover parliamentary polls, which were boycotted by the opposition and hit by the deadliest election violence in the country's history.
Analysts say the new assembly could be short-lived since Hasina faces a worsening political crisis and mounting calls for new polls from the international community and the opposition.
The opposition, led by two-times former prime minister Khaleda Zia who is under de facto house arrest, called for a non-stop blockade of roads, rail and waterways from Wednesday to topple the government.
The blockade was only partially imposed in the capital, with many activists behind bars after a crackdown by security forces in the weeks before Sunday's election.
Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) described the weekend vote as a farce and the United States said it lacked credibility.
