Dhaka: The Election Commission (EC) is preparing to initiate discussions with stakeholders starting September 28 as part of the lead-up to the 13th Jatiya Sangsad election. Confirming the schedule, EC Secretariat Director of Public Relations Md. Ruhul Amin Mallik stated that the initial phase will involve representatives from civil society and academia.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the EC’s roadmap for the upcoming election had slated the stakeholder dialogues to commence in the last week of September. Invitations will be extended to participants about a week to ten days prior to the discussions. The first sessions will include civil society members, women’s representatives, and media figures.
The comprehensive roadmap outlines dialogues involving registered political parties, university educators, civil society and women’s representatives, media editors and journalists, election observers, election experts, and wounded July fighters. The EC aims to wrap up these discussions within one to one and a half months.
Previously, Election Commissioner Md. Anwarul Islam Sarker reiterated to journalists that the roadmap specified late September as the dialogue’s starting point. He confirmed plans to initiate talks in the last week of the month.
In line with the roadmap, the EC is expediting the registration process for new political parties. Currently, 51 political parties hold official registration status with the Commission. This year saw a record 143 parties apply for registration to participate in the national elections. After initial reviews, 121 applications were rejected, and the remaining 22 are undergoing field-level verification. The EC has also sent formal notifications to the parties whose applications were denied.