Against the backdrop of growing Western pressure to hold free and fair elections, the Bangladesh government has urged the Opposition parties to participate in the polls and has invited Western observers to witness the vote on January 7. This invitation to foreign dignitaries was extended on Friday during an extraordinary outreach that the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh, Masud Bin Momen, held at the High Commission of Bangladesh with around 90 Delhi-based diplomats who are concurrently accredited to the neighbouring country.
Mr. Momen, who also held a Foreign Office Consultation with his Indian counterpart Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Friday, pushed back on a Western proposal for holding dialogue with the Opposition, saying there is no time left for any more political dialogue with the BNP. However, he offered an assurance that the election would be inclusive, as a number of political parties, including a few “emerging parties”, will contest.
“Right now, we are going through the schedule of submission of nomination papers and scrutiny of nomination papers. Awami League, Jatiyo Party, many other emerging parties have started the process. There is a constitutional obligation to hold elections within ninety days of expiry of the parliament but even within this timeframe we can extend the date beyond January 7, as suggested by one of the election commissioners, if the BNP or any other parties decide to participate in the elections,” Mr. Momen said in a select media briefing, explaining that the Awami League government remains committed to holding transparent polling.
