DHAKA: Brushing aside BNP‘s demand to hold the national elections by August this year, Bangladesh’s interim government, led by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, has remained firm on its previously announced election timeline, confirming that the polls will take place in December.
The “confirmation” came shortly after the meeting on Monday between Yunus and a BNP delegation led by party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir. In a post-meeting interaction with reporters, Alamgir said Yunus has assured that his government is working to arrange the elections by December. The interim government had previously stated that the elections could take place either by December this year or in June 2026.
Political pressure for holding an early election has been growing daily, amid the sharply deteriorating law and order situation. In January, Alamgir had said: “We think the elections are possible in the middle of this year, and that means between July and Aug.”
On Monday, Alamgir led a three-member BNP team to the 90-minute meeting with Yunus. “What we have repeatedly said (to Yunus) is that this government is an interim government. So, we have called on them again for quick elections,” he told reporters. He added that the interim government cannot avoid the responsibility for the recent vandalism, as they happened in front of government institutions and forces.