United News of Bangladesh

Election Commission (EC) Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed on Monday said they have not yet received any clear instructions from the government regarding the local government elections. He also said the schedule for the presidential election has not been finalised as the EC is still waiting for the voter list from the Parliament Secretariat. "The date or schedule for the presidential election has not been fixed yet. We have requested the Parliament Secretariat to send the voter list. After receiving the voter list, we will discuss the election date and schedule," the EC secretary said, while talking to reporters at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital. On July 24 last, Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned as President and Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad took charge as the acting head of state. The EC, led by Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, held a meeting with acting Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal on July 28 in line with the Presidential Election Act, 1991, which obliges the Commission to consult with the Speaker before the announcement of the schedule for the presidential election. According to Article 123(2) of the Constitution, an election to fill the vacant office of the President must be held within 90 days of the post becoming vacant due to resignation. Talking about the local government elections, Akhtar said the EC has not yet received any clear instructions from the government in this regard. He said the Commission had earlier kept July 31 last as the deadline for new voter registration ahead of the local government elections. "As we have yet to get any clear instruction regarding the local government elections, the July 31 deadline for voter registration may be changed, or it may remain unchanged," the EC secretary said. He said the Commission has prepared a set of proposals for amending the local government election laws and the proposals will be sent to the Local Government Division for consideration. Asked whether local government elections could be held from October, Akhtar said the Commission normally requires around 45 days between the announcement of the election schedule and polling day. Besides, it takes another one and a half months to finalise and print the voter list, meaning that the EC generally needs around three months of preparations before holding an election, he explained. "Different timelines have been discussed, including September, October and even December (for starting to hold the local government elections). As there is no clear information yet, it will not be appropriate for me to comment," the EC secretary said. Responding to another question, he said, to his knowledge, there has been no formal communication with the government regarding the local government elections so far. "However, our preparations are continuing without any slowdown," he added. 38 political parties submit audit reports Akhtar said 38 registered political parties, including the BNP and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, have submitted their audited financial statements for the 2025 calendar year to the EC. He said 13 parties have sought an extension of the submission deadline, while eight parties have not responded. According to the Representation of the People Order, political parties must submit their audit reports by July 31 for the previous year. As the deadline fell on a Friday, the EC extended it until August 2, said Akhtar Ahmed. There are now 59 registered political parties, while the registration of one party – Awami League – remains suspended.

Local Government and Rural Development Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday said the Election Commission has already started preparations to hold the local government elections in a free and neutral manner. “In order to arrange the next local government polls in a free, fair and impartial manner, the Election Commission has already started necessary preparations,” Fakhrul, also the Minister in charge of the Election Commission (EC) Secretariat in Parliament, told Parliament, replying to a starred question from treasury bench member Sheikh Md Rejaul Islam (Naogaon-6). Deputy Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal tabled the question-answer session at the outset of the day’s business of the House. Fakhrul said the EC has undertaken the necessary preparations to ensure that a credible and participatory local government election is held within the stipulated timeframe. Replying to a question from NCP lawmaker Abul Hasnat, popularly known as Hasnat Abdullah (Cumilla-4), the minister said the EC  introduced, for the first time, an IT-supported postal ballot registration system to facilitate voting by Bangladeshis living abroad. He said the initiative will continue in the next national election and that the Election Commission is working to bring the maximum number of expatriate Bangladeshis under the postal balloting system to ensure their voting rights. In response to a question from opposition Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Abdul Karim (Gaibandha-2) Fakhrul Islam said right now the government has no plan to increase the salaries and allowances of union parishad chairmen and members.

The local government elections will begin at the end of the current year, said Prime Minister’s Adviser on Information and Broadcasting Dr Zahed Ur Rahman on Tuesday. “The election will start at the end of the year. Some preparations are needed which have already been communicated by the concerned ministry,” he said while responding to questions at a press briefing at the conference room of the Press Information Department (PID) at the Secretariat. Replying to a question the adviser said the whole election process is expected to take between 10 months to a year after it begins. Responding to another question whether the government plans to abolish Upazila Parishad following the allocation of office space for MPs at Upazila Parishad office, the adviser said no such decision has been taken yet. Referring to legal provisions, the adviser said under Section 25 of the Upazila Parishad Act, MPs are legally advisers to Upazila Parishad.  “If he is there legally, some may argue whether that position should exist at all — whether an MP should serve as an adviser is a separate debate. But providing an office does not make the situation worse in any way. If we follow that line of reasoning, since an MP is an adviser to the Upazila Parishad, it is only logical that they would have an office there. As I said, there is public debate on whether MPs should hold such advisory roles,” he said. The government has no intention of weakening or diminishing the role of Upazila Parishad through such measures, he noted.

National Citizen Party (NCP) has formed a committee to conduct the upcoming local government elections, appointing its Chief Organiser (North) Md Sarjis Alam as Chairman and Abdul Hannan Masud as member secretary. The party disclosed the information in a message posted on its official Facebook page around 10:15pm on Monday. Other members of the committee are Ariful Islam Adib, Alauddin Mohammad, Tahsin Riaz and Advocate Monjila Jhuma.