Bangladesh Election Commission rules out local elections before national polls

The Election Commission of Bangladesh has stated that it will not be possible to hold local elections before national elections. This confirmation came at a time when major political parties in Bangladesh were at loggerheads over which election to have first, according to the local media.

Speaking to the country's leading newspaper, The Daily Star, one of the Bangladeshi Election Commissioners, requesting anonymity, said, "We are also observing the law and order situation. We all know the morale of law enforcers has been low since August 5. It would not be wise to hold local elections when police morale is still low."

Earlier this week, Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud said, "We are not thinking about local elections at the moment. Local polls usually take place in phases. If we begin local elections at the moment, it will be almost impossible to hold the parliamentary election by December or January."

For the last few weeks, several political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party(BNP), Jamaat-e-Islami, and the Left Democratic Alliance (LDA), met the Election Commission separately, raising a demand for conducting the national elections this year.

The radical political outfit Jamaat e Islami, however, demanded that national elections be held only after local elections.

Addressing a rally on Friday, Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary Mia Golam Parwar reiterated his party's call for holding local government elections before the national election. He further stated that conspiracies are obstructing reforms and a fair electoral process.

On the other hand, BNP had issued a warning to the interim government, led by Chief Advisor Mohammad Yunus, and other political parties in Bangladesh not to tamper with the national elections.

The party claimed that any tactics to postpone national elections in the guise of reforms would lead to intensified protest movements, according to some local media reports.

With the Election Commission of Bangladesh preparing to hold elections in December 2025, a rift seemingly grew between two former allies, BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.

BNP, which emerged as the largest political party in Bangladesh after the fall of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government, prioritised national elections, while Jamaat showed support for conducting local government elections first.