Bangladesh election: Muhammad Yunus sets deadline; India asks to hold ‘inclusive, free, fair’ polls — Key points to know

Bangladesh’s chief advisor, Muhammad Yunus, has assured that the nationwide polls will take place between December 2025 and June 2026, even as political parties continue to pressure him to set a poll date.

Bangladesh's elections are due after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted last year following a nationwide protest. Yunus had then taken over as the head of the interim government on 8 August 2024.

India had earlier called for the early holding of free, fair, and inclusive elections in Bangladesh, while raising concerns over the neighbouring country’s ban on Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League.

Here are the latest details you need to know about elections in Bangladesh:

1. Acknowledging the call for parliamentary elections in Bangladesh, Yunus said earlier that they could be held by June next year. During his visit to Japan, the interim chief announced that the next national elections will be held “any time between December and June next year”.

“Prof Yunus told Taro Aso that the election will be held between December and June. He has set a six-month time frame and the election will be conducted within that period,” Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam was quoted by Dhaka Tribune as saying.

2. Last week, the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) issued a directive prohibiting Awami League and its affiliates from carrying out political activities, including rallies and conferences, until Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal completes its proceedings.

The court was set up in 2009 by Hasina to investigate crimes committed by the Pakistani army during Bangladesh's war for independence in 1971.

“We have suspended Bangladesh Awami League registration [as a political party] in line with the home ministry notification,” Aktar Ahmed, Senior Secretary of the Election Commission, told reporters.

3. The Awami League rejected “this decision of the fascist dictator Yunus government”. The party said in a statement, “...we express firm commitment that the Bangladesh Awami League will continue to conduct its activities properly, ignoring this decision of the fascist Yunus government.”

4. Amid the political uprising in Bangladesh, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday (29 May) refuted Mohammad Yunus' claims that “Indian media delegitimises transitional leadership.”

The statement came as Yunus alleged that external factors, including India, might be behind efforts to destabilise the country. According to ANI, Yunus said there were “relentless efforts to destabilise Bangladesh” both internally and externally, leading to a “war-like situation”.

“When statements of this sort come, it seems like you want to deflect in another direction from your own challenges related to governance there — and to blame others by saying that these extraneous issues caused by others are the reason for these problems — does not solve the issue,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday.

5. The MEA spokesperson also urged Bangladesh to hold an inclusive, free, and fair election at an early date to ascertain the people's will and mandate.

Jaiswal stated, “On Bangladesh, we have articulated our position very clearly, as far as elections in Bangladesh are concerned, and we have done so consistently. Bangladesh needs to ascertain the will and mandate of the people by holding an inclusive, fair and free election at an early date.”

6. The Ministry of External Affairs earlier called Bangladesh's ban on the Awami League “concerning”. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on 13 May, “The ban on the Awami League without due process is a concerning development.”

“As a democracy, India is naturally concerned about the curtailment of democratic freedoms and shrinking political space. We strongly support the early holding of free, fair and inclusive elections in Bangladesh,” Jaiswal said.

7. Meanwhile, the head of a newly launched political party told Reuters that Bangladesh's interim government has been unable to fully ensure public safety and holding a general election this year will be difficult.

“In the past seven months, we all expected the policing system, law and order to be restored through short-term reforms. It has happened to an extent, but not up to our expectations,” said Nahid Islam, the head of Jatiya Nagorik Party or National Citizens' Party (NCP) and former student leader.

“In the current law and order situation and policing system, I don't think it is possible to hold a national election,” the 26-year-old said in his first interview as NCP head in Dhaka.

8. The National Citizens' Party (NCP) has said that elections in Bangladesh must take place only after the completion of reforms. According Daily Star, NCP Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari said earlier that it is possible to implement the electoral reforms and hold elections within the timeframe set by Yunus.

9. However, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia wants polls held by December. The party said it would be “difficult” to continue supporting Yunus' government without a firm election plan.

10. As per Dhaka Tribune, BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia expressed hope that democracy would soon be restored in Bangladesh. Bangladesh’s ailing former Prime Minister Zia returned to the country from London in early May after four months of medical treatment, adding to pressure for its interim leaders to hold elections.

Zia and Hasina have alternately ruled Bangladesh as prime ministers since 1991, when the country returned to a democracy after the ouster of authoritarian President H.M. Ershad.

11. Recently, rumours surfaced that Yunus was considering stepping down. It was claimed that Bangladesh's de facto prime minister has expressed concerns over the political parties not reaching a “common ground”.

Dismissing the rumours, acting head of the planning ministry, Wahiduddin Mahmud, told reporters as per AlJazeera: “The chief adviser [Yunus] is staying with us – he hasn’t said he’ll resign – and the other advisers are also staying; we are here to carry out the responsibilities given to us.”