The Bangladesh Army enjoys by far the strongest public approval among major national institutions, while police are the only institution surveyed where disapproval outweighs approval, according to the latest International Republican Institute (IRI) survey.
The findings reveal a sharp contrast in how Bangladeshis perceive different state and social institutions, with the Army receiving an approval rating of 78%.
The High Court and local government institutions, upazila parishads and city corporations, follow with approval ratings of around 61% each.
The media receives about 59% approval, while religious leaders stand at around 58%.
Survey: Drug concern nearly triples, emerges as Bangladesh’s No 2 problemPublic assessments become less positive further down the institutional rankings.
The student movement receives an approval rating of about 56%, while the Election Commission stands at roughly 53%.
Political parties collectively fare worse, receiving around 51% approval.
Police sit at the bottom of the list.
Only 45% approve of the job police are doing, while 52% disapprove, making police the only institution covered by the question with a negative net approval rating.
The findings are significant as Bangladesh continues to debate institutional reform and public confidence in state agencies following the political upheaval of 2024 and the February 2026 national election.
IRI asked respondents whether they strongly or somewhat approved or disapproved of the performance of nine institutions and groups: the Army, High Court, local government bodies, media, religious leaders, student movement, Election Commission, political parties and police.
The results suggest that public confidence varies substantially across institutions, with security institutions themselves receiving sharply different assessments.
The nationwide survey was conducted among 5,000 voting-age adults between May 16 and June 24, with a margin of error of ±1.7 percentage points.
