Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus assures UK MP of free and fair elections in Bangladesh

Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus reassured UK MP Rupa Huq on Saturday that the upcoming general election in Bangladesh will be conducted fairly, with no room for manipulation. 

He revealed that the elections are tentatively scheduled for either December 2025 or mid-2026, depending on how much reform the people demand.

“The election date will depend on how much reform people want,” Yunus explained.

Rupa Huq, who is keen to observe the election, asked about the election timeline and the process of reforms being carried out by the interim government. 

Prof. Yunus explained that in the last three elections, the people had no chance to vote freely, as the elections were compromised by fake MPs, a fake parliament, and a fake speaker. 

“People could not vote in the last three elections. There was a fake parliament; fake MPs and a fake speaker,” he said.

He emphasized that, under the current government, Bangladesh has restored the voices of the people that had been silenced in the past. 

“The whole country has now got their voices back; their voice was taken away forcibly,” he stated.

Huq also expressed her interest in returning to Bangladesh to monitor the elections firsthand. 

She was encouraged by the changes she observed during her visit, stating, “I am really encouraged by seeing Bangladesh: 2.”

During their meeting, Prof. Yunus also explained to Huq the reasons behind the mass protests in July and the repression under former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s administration.

James Goldman, Deputy High Commissioner and Development Director of the British High Commission in Dhaka, also attended the meeting.

Before this discussion, Rupa Huq was part of a UK business delegation that met with Bangladesh’s Special Envoy to the Chief Advisor, Lutfey Siddiqi, along with officials from BIDA (Bangladesh Investment Development Authority), Ashik Mahmud Chowdhury, and Lamiya Morshed, the Senior Secretary for SDG Affairs. 

The delegation, which is on a three-day visit to Bangladesh, was exploring trade and investment opportunities in the country.

Iqbal Ahmed OBE, the Chairman of UKBCCI, and President M G Moula Mia are leading the delegation. 

During their meeting, Lutfey Siddiqi encouraged British businesspeople, including those of Bangladeshi origin, to invest in Bangladesh, highlighting the government’s reform efforts to attract foreign investment.