Preparations underway to conduct General Elections by Dec: B’desh Election Commission

Dhaka/New Delhi, Feb. 12: The Bangladesh Election Commission on Tuesday said preparations were underway to conduct the General elections by December.

Following vandalism across the nation over the past week, the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus has agreed to the proposal.

The EC's comments came a day after Yunus assured former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to hold elections by December.

Election Commissioner Abul Fazal Mohammad Sanaullah told journalists, "We are preparing for the national elections in December (this year)."

He was speaking after a meeting with diplomats of 17 Western and other countries alongside the United Nations and European Union (EU) representatives in Dhaka.

Instead of local government elections, as proposed by a government-appointed commission, a national election is the priority, Sanaullah, who was flanked by the diplomats, said.

He said the Chief Adviser earlier mentioned two deadlines but "we, however, are preparing for the first date."

UN resident representative Stefan Liller, who attended the meeting, said the United Nations expected the upcoming polls to be the best in Bangladesh's history and "we are supporting the EC to conduct a free and fair election".

He, however, declined to comment on the challenges of holding such elections, saying "That is not for me to comment."

On Monday, Chief Adviser Yunus assured Zia's BNP to hold elections by December as per the party's demand for the quickest possible timing citing reasons of deteriorated law and order situation and the precarious economic conditions.

"He (Yunus) informed us that the government is working to hold the election by December," BNP secretary general Mirja Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told journalists after a meeting with the Chief Adviser late on Monday night.

- With inputs from news agencies