United News of Bangladesh

Political parties participating in Sunday’s electoral dialogue, urged the Election Commission (EC) to strictly uphold neutrality, to be bold and remain uncompromising on enforcement of electoral rules and the code of conduct to hold the upcoming national election in a free, fair and credible manner. The EC held two separate discussions with a total of 11 parties at Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital on the second day of its ongoing electoral dialogue with registered political parties. Six parties attended the morning session and five others joined the afternoon session. Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin presided over both sessions, while election commissioners Abdur Rahmanel Masud, Tahmida Ahmad, Anwarul Islam Sarker and Brig Gen (Retd) Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah, as well as EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed were present. Gonoforum, Gono Front, Islamic Front Bangladesh, Islami Oikyajote, Bangladesh Supreme Party (BSP) and Bangladesh Jatiya Party took part in the first session; Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Bangladesh Jasod), Bangladesh National Awami Party (Bangladesh NAP), Krishak Sramik Janata League, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis and Islami Andolan Bangladesh joined the second session. Gonoforum’s acting President Subrata Chowdhury said those who worked in the previous election commissions were competent, but unfortunately neutrality was missing among them. “There were invisible forces around them,” he said. He urged the current Commission to ensure neutrality at all levels. “During your tenure, you need to uphold impartiality both in the national and local government elections and the neutrality must be visible to the people. We still have confidence in you… There will be a national election in February and a referendum as well,” he added. About the referendum, he questioned the format of single option ‘yes’ or ‘no’ against several questions -may make it ineffective. “Make sure the referendum does not become a matter of mockery. You must stand firm.” He stressed the responsibility of political parties to follow the code of conduct. “The current EC must ensure a good election,” said Subrata Chowdhury. Gono Front Secretary General Ahmad Ali Sheikh said the Commission must ensure it has every capacity necessary to conduct a proper election. Bangladesh Jatiya Party’s acting chairman ANM Sirajul Islam recommended arrangement of the divisional-wise balloting and installing CCTV cameras at polling stations to make the election fair as well as reducing security deposits. Bangladesh Jatiya Party (Matin) Secretary General Jafor Ahmed Joy expressed worry whether the commission can uphold the rules it issued: "You have taken the oath. The responsibility of the nation is on your shoulders. If you cannot perform your responsibility due to pressure from someone, then there is a better way, take that path. But don't bow down (to anyone)." Islamic Front Bangladesh Chairman Syed Bahadur Shah Mojaddedi placed nine proposals. “The last three elections held over the past 15 years were all controversial. They created a crisis of confidence over voting. The entire electoral system is in crisis,” he said. He asked for ensuring a level playing field and holding the next election in four phases instead of a single day. Addressing the first session, the CEC sought cooperation from political parties to create a safe environment for voters during the upcoming national election. Nasir Uddin said the commission’s main objective is to hold the next election in a fair, acceptable environment. “To achieve this, we need your cooperation,” he said. “We need your support in bringing voters to the polling stations and creating a safe environment,” he said. The CEC said the Election Commission has already formulated a code of conduct for the upcoming election. “A fair election largely depends on the proper implementation of the code of conduct. If candidates comply with it properly, the election will be fair. In this regard, we seek your cooperation.” Opening the afternoon session, the CEC said if the parties cooperate, the burden on them regarding enforcement of the code of conduct becomes far lighter. “If the parties cooperate with us, we won't have so many headaches with the code of conduct. Many people think that if we work for them, the commission is their man. We can't work for anyone." Noting both misinformation and disinformation as one of the biggest challenges in the upcoming election — a challenge previous Commissions did not have to face. “This has become a major concern,” he said. Krishak Sramik Janata League President Bangabir Kader Siddique said he hadn’t joined discussions with the government in the last 15 months despite getting invitations, but he came to attend the EC’s dialogue as a mark of respect for its constitutional positions. He claimed that the current government divided the country completely: “There are 40-50 registered political parties, but they invite only two-three parties. It’s neither neutral nor universal.” Bangladesh NAP Chairman Jebel Rahman Ghoni said the dialogue should have been held earlier and expressed concern that the Commission did not collect opinions from all stakeholders while amending the RPO and the code of conduct. “If we make recommendations now, these things may not be implemented,” he said. Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Secretary General Jalal Uddin Ahmed emphasised the need for EC’s neutrality. “If neutrality is questioned, the national election itself will be questioned,” he said. Islami Andolan Bangladesh Senior Presidium Member Syed Mosaddeq Billah Al Madani opposed holding the referendum and general election on the same day. “If both are held together, the referendum loses its importance. We want the referendum on a separate day,” he said. Pointing at Awami League, Bangladesh Jasod General Secretary Nazmul Haque Prodhan said the leaders of a political party fled the country and it won’t participate in the election. “Those who are participating must have a congenial environment. The EC must ensure that environment. The Commission must create it,” he said. The Commission will sit with 12 more political parties in two separate sessions on Monday. On November 13, the EC opened its pre-election dialogue with registered political parties and already held talks with a total of 23 ones out of 53 registered political parties on the first two days of the electoral dialogue. Currently, there are 53 registered political parties, excluding the Awami League, whose registration remains suspended. Besides, the EC recognised three new parties, including NCP, as registered parties. The Commission aims to complete the dialogue with all registered political parties within this month before the announcement of the national election schedule in early December. In late September 2025, the Commission opened a series of electoral dialogues with different stakeholders amid talks with civil society representatives on September 28. Later, the EC held separate dialogues with the representatives of teachers, senior journalists frm different media outlets, election experts and election observers.

Youth participants on Sunday urged all political parties to include a firm commitment to enacting a comprehensive Road Safety Law in their election manifestos, ahead of the upcoming 13th parliamentary elections. Marking the “World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims”, the call came during a youth march and candlelit vigil organised by the Ahsania Mission Youth Forum for Health and Wellbeing at Shyamoli playground around 5pm on Sunday. The event was held in memory of those killed in road crashes. Speaking at the programme, young participants said road crashes have taken the form of an “epidemic” as lives continue to be lost on the country’s roads every day. They noted that youth remain the most vulnerable group among road users and that road crashes are one of the leading causes of death for young people. They stressed the need for integrated safe road management to prevent further loss of lives, and said political parties must pledge to formulate and properly enforce a strong road safety law in their upcoming election platforms. More than 50 youths, including road crash victims and their families, officials from the Dhaka Ahsania Mission’s Health Sector, and people from various professions joined the candlelit vigil. The participants demanded the adoption of an effective Road Safety Act aimed at reducing road crash-related deaths and injuries in Bangladesh by half by 2030, says a press release. Earlier, a 4-hour workshop on the Safe System Approach and road safety was held for youth from noon.

Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury on Saturday (November 15) said that a special law enforcement and security deployment plan will be there in place for nine days over the upcoming national election. “The plan includes five days prior to the election, one day on the election day, and three days following the vote, with strict security measures enforced throughout; and the duration may be adjusted depending on the country’s situation,” he said while talking to reporters at Patuakhali Circuit House. The adviser said the army currently has 30,000 personnel deployed, but this number is expected to rise to nearly 100,000 during the election period. He said the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) will contribute around 35,000 members, while the Navy and the Coast Guard will deploy five thousand and four thousand personnel respectively. “The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) will have approximately eight thousand members on duty.” Read more: Tensions rise as ICT going to set verdict date in Hasina case The adviser highlighted the role of the Ansar force, noting that about 550,000 personnel will be involved in the election management. According to him, Ansar will play a major role this time and will be equipped with weapons and body cameras to ensure effective management and security throughout the election period. Emphasising security, he asserted, “There is no room for doubt regarding security. The election will be held very peacefully—there is no question about that.” On a question regarding the change of government, the adviser said, “The government did not fall because of three individuals. It happened due to the spontaneous participation of the people. You have seen how they fled the country, how their relatives escaped. It was not due to one or two persons; it happened because of the will of the people.” Later, he inspected the Patuakhali Police Lines and the Coast Guard Station. Read more: Dhaka on high alert amid Awami League's countrywide ‘lockdown’ call

Political parties, taking part in the Election Commission’s (EC) dialogue on Thursday, voiced concern over the prevailing law and order situation and demanded an impartial role from the administration and proper enforcement of the electoral code during the upcoming national election. They also expressed views on issues such as the influence of black money in elections, party registration, voter security, enforcement of the electoral code, and the amount of security deposit and election expenditure. Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin said the Election Commission wants to act as a true referee in the upcoming national election, emphasising the need for cooperation from all political parties. The EC arranged two separate sessions – the first one with six political parties and the second one with another six parties – in Nirbachon Bhaban as the Commission opened its electoral dialogue with registered parties ahead of the next general election likely to be held in early February 2026. Liberal Democratic Party-LDP, Bangladesh Congress, Bangladesh Muslim League, National People's Party, Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan and Jamiyate Ulamaye Islam Bangladesh joined the morning discussion, while Communist Party of Bangladesh-CPB, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-JSD, Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal-Basod, Revolutionary Workers Party of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Nationalist Front-BNF and Bangladesh Nationalist Movement-BNM attended the afternoon session. Addressing the first session, the CEC said "You (political parties) will play in the elections. You are the players. We really want to be in the role of referees. Without your cooperation, it is difficult to play the role of referees and hold fair elections." Nasir Uddin said cooperation from political parties is essential to ensure a free, fair, and credible election. “If we do not get cooperation from the main players (political parties), the election will inevitably become questionable,” he said. Referring to the recent surge of posters in Dhaka city, he said, “The city is flooded with posters, though the use of posters has already been declared illegal. “These (posters) must be removed. Those who put them up should take them down. We will be strict. We will not spare anyone; we will blindly jump over these violations. Once the election schedule is announced, we will take immediate action,” he said. The CEC also urged political parties to strictly follow the electoral code of conduct, saying, “If anyone stubbornly refuses to comply, it will create a conflicting situation. We do not want confrontation. We want to move forward to ensure implementation of the code of conduct with everyone’s cooperation.” Referendum, national election together in Feb: Prof Yunus While addressing the second session, the CEC said the Election Commission will be able to give its opinion on holding a referendum on the July National Charter 2025 only after receiving the matters formally from the government. "If we know the matters formally, do exercises, and all sit down in the commission and discuss, we can give our opinions. It would not be appropriate to give opinions now," he said, replying to a question sent by reporters, seeking the Commission’s opinion over the announcement of the Chief Adviser to hold the referendum and the national election simultaneously in a single day. The CEC said he couldn’t even listen to the speech of the Chief Adviser as he was in the dialogue. “I actually did not listen to the speech. I do not want to give my opinion right now,” he said. Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Thursday said that the national election and the referendum will be held simultaneously in the first half of February next year. LDP Presidium Member Chowdhury Hasan Sarwardy said there is still a serious lack of security. “I think adequate measures have not yet been initiated to ensure a conducive electoral atmosphere. Security operations should be launched before the announcement of the election schedule to restore public confidence,” he said. CPB President Sajjad Zahir Chandan said no immediate action was taken against the violation of election code in the past. “If those who have muscle power or political influence engage in irregularities or violation of electoral code, no instant action is taken against them. The authority used to say that action will be taken later. This culture must change for a fair election,” he said. Fakhrul sees Feb polls as a chance for truly representative parliament He also proposed reducing the election security deposit, saying, “If we truly believed in equality, we wouldn’t fix the deposit at Tk 10,000. Our specific proposal is to set it at Tk 500 so that poor and working-class people can participate. Otherwise, it’s discrimination.” CPB General Secretary Abdullah Kafi Ratan urged the EC to ensure strict enforcement of election laws and announce a specific time or week for schedule declaration in a bid to remove confusion among people. Bangladesh Muslim League Adviser Zahir Uddin Muhammad Babor urged the EC to take steps to improve the election atmosphere, while Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan Secretary General Maulana Yusuf Sadek Haqqani called for strong EC action against the use of black money in elections. Revolutionary Workers Party of Bangladesh General Secretary Saiful Haque said instructions given to deputy commissioners, superintendents of police, and officers-in-charge are crucial. “After the schedule is announced, you must bring election-related ministries and agencies under your control to prevent any allegations of partiality. Otherwise, even a good election will not be possible,” he warned. CA’s speech fails to meet public expectations on referendum: Parwar JSD Senior Vice-President Tania Rob alleged that certain political actors are already trying to influence the administration. “If they start controlling officials even before the schedule, one can easily guess what will happen during the polls,” she said. The EC will sit with 12 more political parties in two sessions on Sunday next (November 16) as part of its electoral dialogue. The six parties who are being invited for the Sunday’s morning session are Gonoforum, Gono Front, Islamic Front Bangladesh, Islami Oikyajote, Bangladesh Supreme Party (BSP) and Bangladesh Jatiya Party. The six other parties for the afternoon session are Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-Bangladesh Jasod, Bangladesh National Awami Party-Bangladesh NAP, Trinomul BNP, Krishak Sramik Janata League, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis and Islami Andolan Bangladesh. The Commission aims to complete the dialogue with all registered political parties within this month before the announcement of the national election schedule in early December. In late September 2025, the Commission opened a series of electoral dialogues with different stakeholders amid talks with civil society representatives on September 28. Later, the EC held separate dialogues with the representatives of teachers, senior journalists from different media outlets, election experts and election observers.  

A delegation of women entrepreneurs on Wednesday urged the Election Commission (EC) to ensure that female candidates are nominated in at least 150 parliamentary seats and facilitate women voters in exercising their franchise in the national election. The delegation, led by President of Women Entrepreneurs Association of Bangladesh (WEAB) Nasreen Fatema Awal, placed the demand during a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin at the latter’s Nirbachan Bhaban office in the afternoon. “We want the number of women in parliament to increase. At least 150 constituencies should be given to women. We are also requesting the government, through the Election Commission, to extend support to women candidates,” said Nasreen Fatema Awal while talking to reporters after the meeting. Army to deploy up to 100,000 troops during election: Army HQ Noting that women receive various forms of assistance in elections in different countries including the USA, the WEAB president said such support would help women contest comfortably and also encourage female voters to participate freely. “We want at least 50 percent — that is, 150 of the 300 seats — to be contested by women. We wanted to ensure that women can contest in the election,” she added. Nasreen Fatema said contesting polls is difficult for women as they don't have easy access to funds in the patriarchal environment. “If the government provides some financial support, many more women will be able to participate in the election,” she said. Settle applications of expat voters by Thursday: EC to field officials   Responding to a question, she said political parties should also increase the share of nominations for women. Right now, some parties give only 5 percent or less of their nominations to women, said the women entrepreneur. She asked the Election Commission to play a role so that the political parties would raise the share of nominations for women in the election.

Attorney General Md. Asaduzzaman has remarked that Bangladesh should be a country where “no one can rise from the grave at midnight and cast a vote.” He made the statement on Friday afternoon during a public gathering organized by Shailkupa’s Bogura, Abaipur, and Nityanandpur union BNP in Jhenaidah. Speaking at the event, Asaduzzaman said, “For 17 years, none of us could vote. When the people of Bangladesh were directionless in 1971, Shaheed Zia declared independence and showed the nation the right path. Following Shaheed Zia’s ideals, we must stand firm against corruption.” He further warned that if Awami League leaders and activists do not improve themselves, the people will take action against them. “Your leader Hasina has left everyone behind and fled abroad with her relatives. Now she is plotting from outside the country, but it will bring no benefit,” he added. Other speakers at the gathering included Advocate Humayun Babar Firoz, General Secretary of Shailkupa Upazila BNP; Organizational Secretary Nazrul Islam Kajol; Walid Hasan Pikul, Examination Controller of Islamic University; and Abu Musha, Vice President of the Central Chhatra Dal, along with other party leaders. The program was presided over by Rafiqul Islam Bishash, President of Abaipur Union BNP.

Election Commissioner Md. Anwarul Islam Sarker has assured that the Election Commission was taking all necessary preparations to hold a free and fair national election in February. Speaking at a view-exchange meeting with journalists at Patuakhali Circuit House, he said, “We are neutral and moving forward to offer a free, fair election.” Regarding the preparedness of the election, he said they face no obstruction to taking the steps necessary for holding a free election.

The Election Commission (EC) on Thursday released a revised list of 119 electoral symbols, incorporating ‘Water Lily Bud’ (Shapla Koli), a symbol sought by the National Citizen Party (NCP). According to the revised schedule, 20 new symbols have been added to the list, while 16 old ones have been dropped. Other newly included symbols are: Camel, Comb, Torchlight, Table Lamp, Tractor, Dressing Table, Lock, Double-decker Bus, Turban, Water Tap, Palanquin, Fruit Basket, Baby Taxi, Electric Bulb, Motorcycle, Staircase, Sunflower, Railway Engine, and Handshake. The dropped symbols are: Banana, Cot, Ostrich, Charger Light, Tiffin Carrier, Drum, Watermelon, Refrigerator, Flute, Bench, Brinjal, Balloon, Bottle Gourd, Conch Shell, Suitcase, and Flower Pot. Earlier, the EC had published a list of 115 symbols that did not include ‘Water Lily Bud’, despite repeated demands from NCP to allocate the symbol since the new party applied for registration.

The interim government on Wednesday announced that no official who was involved in any significant capacity, including returning officers and assistant returning officers, in the last three national elections would be engaged in the upcoming parliamentary election. The decision came from a high-level meeting on election preparations, presided over by Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna. Briefing reporters at the Foreign Service Academy, Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said the meeting focused on mainly four issues – the posting of field-level officials and countering misinformation and disinformation on social media during the election period, training of election officials and ensuring security. The meeting laid emphasis on field administration so that no official involved in the last three elections could be posted as deputy commissioner, additional district commissioner, UNO, district magistrate or other magisterial roles during the next election process. “The officials who acted as returning officers, polling officers or assistant returning officers in the last three elections and if they played even minimum roles in the three election should not be engaged this time (in the general election),” said Shafiqul Alam, raising the decisions of the meeting. He said the Election Commission informed that they have already taken major steps in this regard and the commission is working to keep such officials out of the election process. The Press Secretary said the meeting discussed the criteria for posting the officials in different areas. Factors such as administrative competence, physical and professional fitness, previous postings, political background and media report of prior role will be considered during the posting of the officials. The posting will be made randomly, with priority given to those best suited to each post, while avoiding posting officials to areas where they have relatives or potential conflicts of interest, he said. “The fittest persons will be posted in the most vulnerable areas. There will be random selection,” he said, adding that officials will not be posted to their home districts or to the areas of spouses and their relatives. On security arrangements, Home Affairs Adviser Lieutenant General (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said they have already prepared a list of fit officials and identified 64 key personnel for suitable posts. The meeting stressed the need for ensuring maximum neutrality in the posting officials during the election. The meeting also discussed detailed security deployment, including the involvement of around 92,500 army and navy personnel across the country during the election. Of them, 90,000 army personnel will be deployed and one army company to be in each upazila. The meeting also focused on training including body-worn camera training, and the postal balloting for expatriate Bangladeshis and those who will be on election duty and jails.  The Chief Adviser asked for making training videos available on the Election Commission website and state media and completing such preparations by November 15 next. Home Affairs Adviser Lieutenant General (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, National Security Adviser Dr Khalilur Rahman, Chief Adviser’s Special Assistants Lieutenant General (retd) Abdul Hafiz (Defence and National Solidarity Development) and Faiz Ahmed Taiyeb (ICT Affairs), Cabinet Secretary Dr Sheikh Abdur Rashid, CA’s Principal Secretary M Siraz Uddin Miah, Election Commission Secretary Akhter Ahmed, Home Secretary Nasimul Gani, Principal Staff Officer of the Armed Force Division Lieutenant General SM Kamrul Hassan, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Baharul Alam, RAB Director General AKM Shahidur Rahman, Director General of Bangladesh Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mohammad Ziaul Haque, representatives from NSI and DGFI, among others, attended the meeting the two-hour meeting. CA’s Senior Assistant Press Secretary Foyez Ahammad and Assistant Press Secretary Shuchismita Tithi were present at the briefing.

A Commonwealth pre-election assessment mission on Sunday met the Election Commission to know the preparations for the 13th parliamentary election to be held in early February. A five-member Commonwealth delegation, led by its electoral support section’s (ESS) head Linford Andrews, sat with the Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin and four election commissioners at Nirbachan Bhaban in the city. Talking to reporters after the meeting, Linford Andrews said they are here in Bangladesh with a number of objectives in mind, including ascertaining whether there will be broad support among all stakeholders in Bangladesh for the presence of a common observer mission during the next election. “We are here with a number of objectives in mind. The first objective is for us to ascertain whether there will be broad support among all stakeholders in Bangladesh for the presence of a common observer mission. We are also here to assess the prevailing environment as well as the preparations for the election,” he said. He said it is customary when the Commonwealth is due to be invited to observe a Commonwealth member country's election; the Commonwealth Secretary General deploys a pre-election assessment mission to the member country. “I must thank both the interim administration for kindly facilitating all the appointments for us as well as the chief election commissioner, fellow commissioners and the senior secretary for kindly briefing us on their preparations for the upcoming elections,” said Linford Andrews. He said it is their first day in the country and they would be here until Friday (October 31). In the coming days we will be meeting a range of stakeholders including political parties, civil society, international donor and diplomatic community as well as media, he added. He said the Commonwealth has very strong long-standing historical links with Bangladesh. The Commonwealth was the first organization which Bangladesh joined after independence in the early 1970s and ever since then the Commonwealth has an abiding interest in supporting the people of Bangladesh. “Our presence here is testimony to that interest and our enthusiasm to support the people of Bangladesh through this very crucial upcoming election. In all Commonwealth member countries, we always say democracy is a journey and the Commonwealth looks forward to partnership with Bangladesh and the international community in supporting Bangladesh in the weeks and months ahead, not just for the elections but also looking beyond the elections to the post-election phase when we would also be looking very keenly at how we can support Bangladesh in the next governance cycle,” said Linford Andrews. Four other ‎ Commonwealth delegation members are its Asian chapter Dr Dinusha Panditaratne, legal adviser Nancy Kanyago, ‎assistant research officer Sarthak Roy and ESS executive officer Madonna Lynch. EC senior secretary Akhtar Ahmed was present at the meeting.