DHAKA: Bangladesh lawmaker Saber Hossain Chowdhury has been elected to the post of the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) with a staggering 169 votes.

The IPU elections were held in Geneva Thursday in the 131st IPU General Assembly.

His closest contender the Australian candidate got 95 votes.

External Publicity Wing, Ministry of Foreign Affairs disclosed it through a press release on Friday.

This is the first time in the history of Bangladesh and the IPU that a Bangladesh parliamentarian won the Presidency of this only universal forum for global parliamentarians, the release added.

This is a remarkable victory for Bangladesh and It can add a new dimension to our foreign policy and it can also open doors for Bangladesh at a high level.

BDST: 0933 HRS, OCT 17, 2014