Bangladesh sticks to December 18 election date

Nov 19, 2008, 14:58 GMT

Dhaka - Bangladesh's military-backed government announced Wednesday that it would hold the country's December elections as per the previously announced schedules, despite the demands of a leading political party not having been met.

The announcement came an hour before the expiration of a deadline set by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by former prime minister Khaleda Zia, which had demanded that the government delay the poll and allow her party to join.

The deadline expired at 9 pm (1530 GMT) Wednesday.

'The parliamentary and upazila (local council) elections would be held according to previously announced schedule as there had been no consensus between the political alliances ... (and the) government despite ... all our effort,' a key adviser to the interim government said.

The Election Commission earlier fixed balloting dates for parliamentary polls on December 18 and for local councils on December 28.

Zia, also the chief of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), had demanded the complete lifting of the state of emergency, deferral of voting dates of both parliamentary and local government polls and allow voting by Muslim pilgrims who might not be in Bangladesh during the polls.

The government relaxed provisions of its emergency rule to allow limited electioneering by the parties and candidates for the general election.

The BNP-led alliance was yet to make any reaction on the government decision.

On Tuesday the European Union announced that it will send observers to monitor Bangladesh's general election, after concluding that an atmosphere for 'a free, fair and credible election' had been created in the country.'