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Published : 06 Aug 2025, 01:20 AM
The BNP has welcomed the interim government’s announcement that the national election will be held in February 2026, ahead of Ramadan, saying the move ends months of political uncertainty.
BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed praised Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus on Tuesday night for what he described as two “crucial” announcements -- the July Proclamation and the commitment to holding elections early next year.
“Some ambiguity was there around the election,” Salahuddin told reporters outside the BNP chairperson’s office in Gulshan. “That indecision ends today with the chief advisor’s announcement.”
In his national address marking the anniversary of the July Uprising, Yunus had said: “Following this address, we enter our final and most important chapter, we begin the process of handing over power to an elected government.”
He added that he would formally write to the Chief Election Commissioner, instructing the Election Commission to organise national elections in February 2026, before the start of Ramadan.
Yunus had earlier announced in June that elections would likely be held in the first half of April. But after his Jun 13 meeting in London with Tarique Rahman, a joint statement suggested the polls could be held earlier, in February, if all preparations were completed.
While the BNP and other political parties were broadly satisfied with the revised timeline, they continued to demand a precise schedule and timetable.
Yunus’s latest speech did not include an exact date, but Salahuddin said the announcement still carried weight and clarity.
“His advice on how to create an enabling environment for the exercise of voting rights is highly notable,” said Salahuddin.
“We welcome his intent to write to the Election Commission so they may prepare for an election before Ramadan begins in February.”
He noted that although the Election Commission would set the official schedule in due course, “The entire nation had been waiting for today’s directive.”
According to Salahuddin, “People had viewed the election timeline as uncertain. That uncertainty has now been resolved. A nationwide election atmosphere will follow.”
He expressed hope that the upcoming polls would be free, fair and widely admired, urging all citizens to begin preparing.
Asked whether the announcement would resolve the political crisis, he said: “We believe this will help establish greater political stability in the country. There will no longer be any uncertainty in governance, business, or investment. Everything will move forward.”
Earlier that afternoon, Yunus had read out the July Proclamation at the South Plaza of parliament building in the presence of political party representatives, saying that the people of Bangladesh “intend to give full constitutional and state recognition to the 2024 Student-People Uprising,” and that the proclamation would be included in the reformed constitution adopted by the next elected government.
Salahuddin echoed that commitment on behalf of BNP.
“We remain committed to formally recognising this proclamation at the constitutional level. We pledged this before, and we reaffirm it now.”
He added, “Honouring the martyrs of the July Uprising with national hero status is something we deeply support. The promises of legal protection and assistance for those injured or affected in the movement have been made by the chief advisor, by the nation, and by us.”
