Bangladesh’s Election Commission on Thursday unveiled its official roadmap for the general election, which is scheduled for February next year. The poll schedule will be announced at least 60 days before the vote, the commission said.

“The Chief Adviser’s Office has asked us to hold the election before Ramadan. If I am not mistaken, Ramadan will begin on February 17 or 18. From this, you can calculate the probable election date,” Election Commission’s Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed told reporters at a press briefing.

Ahmed said that discussions with political parties and stakeholders will begin by the end of September, a process expected to take “one to one and a half months” to complete.

ELECTION COMMISSION CLEARS POLL PLAN

According to news agency PTI, the commission has set the election target for the first half of February in line with the directive of interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus. The roadmap received the commission’s approval on Wednesday.

The Election Commission has identified 24 priority tasks, including amendments to several key laws including the Representation of the People Order (RPO), the Delimitation of Constituencies Act, the Voter List Act, the Election Officers (Special Provisions) Act of 1991, and the Election Commission Secretariat Act of 2009.

Other measures include the phased finalisation of the voter list, policy guidelines for domestic and foreign observers and journalists, and the registration of new political parties. The commission expects to announce the formal election schedule in the second or third week of December.

NCP AND JAMAAT CHALLENGE POLL PLAN

The announcement followed Yunus’ televised address on August 5, in which he confirmed that the 13th parliamentary election would take place before Ramadan in February.

However, the roadmap has already been criticised by some political groups.

The student-led National Citizen Party (NCP), formed earlier this year with Yunus’s apparent support, expressed dissatisfaction, saying the interim government had broken its promise.

“Announcing the roadmap before declaring the implementation of the ‘July Charter’ is tantamount to breaking promises,” Ariful Islam Adeeb, NCP’s Joint Convener and a former Students against Discrimination (SAD) leader, said at a press conference.

Jamaat-e-Islami has also raised objections, insisting that the polls be held under a proportional representation (PR) system to secure a larger role in the future parliament.

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With inputs form agencies