DHAKA, July 9: Bangladesh’s interim government Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday directed authorities to complete all election-related preparations by December this year.
Yunus specifically directed the home ministry to complete training for all law enforcement agencies as part of the electoral preparations, his press secretary Shafiqul Alam told a press conference here.
“The Chief Adviser has asked all concerned to complete all types [of] poll preparedness by December to hold the 13th national election before Ramadan (mid-March) next year,” he said.
Alam said the election could be held before the expected start of Ramadan around February 17 – subject to lunar sighting – provided all necessary reforms and preparations are completed by December.
The readiness drive includes several tasks, notably the recruitment of 17,000 personnel across the police, paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh, and the Coast Guard.
“The chief adviser ordered law enforcement agencies to enforce laws sternly in the coming months ahead of the elections,” Alam said.
The election is likely to witness strong contests between former prime minister Khaleda Zia’s BNP; the newly-formed student-led National Campus Party (NCP), believed to have backing from Yunus; Jamaat-e-Islami; and other Islamic parties.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which is emerging as the main opposition in the absence of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League, is demanding an early vote, while the NCP and Islamist factions insist polls be delayed until trials of the deposed prime minister and her regime leaders – on charges including crimes against humanity – and institutional reforms are completed. (PTI)
