In a key Eid-ul-Azha eve address, Dr Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, announced that national elections will be held in early April 2026.
Yunus’s announcement comes amid pressure from opposition parties demanding polls by end of this year. The schedule had long been a contentious issue among political factions and the caretaker government, which had earlier proposed holding elections between December and June.
The decision follows last year’s ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was removed from office after violent protests over public sector job quotas.
Following the unrest, Hasina fled to India, where she currently remains in exile.
The Election Commission is expected to publish a detailed roadmap in the coming months.
The announcement follows mounting pressure from opposition parties demanding elections by December 2025. The timing had been a major point of contention between political groups and the interim administration, which had previously suggested a window between December 2025 and June 2026.
While announcing the national elections, Muhammad Yunus stated, "Every time Bangladesh has faced a deep crisis since independence, the root cause has been a flawed election. Such an electoral system had become a tool for consolidating power."
