The Election Commission (EC) has finalized the roadmap for the 13th National Parliamentary elections, scheduled to be held in February next year.
The commission is expected to announce the roadmap either later today (Wednesday) or tomorrow, according to sources familiar with the matter.
A meeting was held at the EC headquarters in Agargaon on Wednesday afternoon, attended by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal, four election commissioners, and the EC senior secretary.
Following the meeting, Election Commissioner Md. Anwarul Islam stated that the roadmap had been finalized and approved, and was now undergoing typing and formatting.
The hearing on the boundaries of parliamentary constituencies is also concluding today. A comprehensive briefing on the overall election preparations is expected from the EC secretary later in the afternoon.
Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed confirmed that the briefing would cover both constituency boundary issues and the finalized election roadmap.
Earlier, last Thursday, the four election commissioners and EC officials held a meeting to discuss the detailed election roadmap.
During that session, Election Commissioner Abul Fazal Md. Sanaullah said that the roadmap would outline the implementation schedule and preparations for the upcoming polls.
The roadmap reportedly covers all key pre-election processes, including party registration, delimitation, appointment of election observers, revision of the electoral roll (RPO), issuance of rules and guidelines, IT-supported registration and postal ballot arrangements for overseas voters, and procurement of election equipment.
The Chief Adviser has already confirmed that the 13th parliamentary elections will be held in the first half of February, before Ramadan.
A formal letter in this regard has been sent to the EC. The CEC also noted that the election schedule will be announced approximately two months prior to the voting day, and after discussions at Wednesday’s meeting, the commission decided that the official schedule (timetable) will likely be published in early December.
