DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh’s Supreme Court acquitted former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in a 2008 corruption case on Wednesday, clearing the way for the ailing leader to fight parliamentary elections in the troubled South Asian country.

Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Wednesday acquitted former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in the last corruption case against her, paving the way for her to run in elections that an interim government says will be held either in December or in the first half of 2026.

There was no reason to delay elections any further, however, said Khaleda's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), one of the main political parties, besides Hasina's Awami League.

Bangladesh's interim government should hold general elections by August in the "greater interest of the country," the party of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia said on Tuesday, citing growing political and economic instability.

By bno Chennai bureau The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has called on the country’s interim government to hold parliamentary elections no later than July or August 2025, underscoring its view that a delay would deepen political and economic instability.