Major political parties on Wednesday recommended that the Election Commission must act as a neutral body for holding the 13th Jatiya Sangsad elections and the referendum, planned for early February 2026.
The parties made the recommendations during EC鈥檚 ongoing dialogues with the political parties.
Thirteen political parties in two separate sessions participated in the fourth day鈥檚 dialogue on Wednesday.
Chairing the session, chief election commissioner ANM Nasir Uddin requested major parties鈥� cooperation to motivate citizens to cast their votes.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party standing committee member Abdul Moyeen Khan said that free, fair and neutral JS polls would remain impossible as long as the EC relied on the executive branch for manpower support.
鈥楾he EC should strengthen its institutional capacity by deploying its own officials as returning and assistant returning officers across all 64 districts,鈥� Moyeen said.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general Mia Golam Parwar recommended the deployment of at least five military personnel at each polling centre, and the transfer of administrative and police cadre officials in a single day through a lottery system once the election schedule is announced.
He, however, questioned how expatriate Bangladeshis would cast votes in the referendum, as it was planned to be held on the day of the JS polls.
Jamaat lawyer Shishir Manir questioned who would impose fines for breaches of the electoral code of conduct and sought a fixed timeline for resolving complaints to ensure prompt action.
National Citizen Party joint member secretary Zahurul Islam Musa also asked the EC to specify who would investigate code聽of聽conduct violations and how long it would take to cancel nominations if candidates are found guilty.
Ganosamhati Andolan chief coordinator Zonayed Saki proposed separate booths and dedicated counting centres for the referendum.
The party鈥檚 chief executive coordinator, Abul Hassan Rubel, urged the EC to provide voter lists with photographs, conduct anti-misinformation campaigns, and install CCTV cameras at all polling booths.
National Democratic Movement secretary general Mominul Amin opposed the code of conduct requiring candidates to submit campaign plans before the polls.
He demanded lifting the ban on plastic banners and the use of motorbikes and boats during campaigns, and called for increasing the number of polling booths to facilitate the timely counting of referendum ballots.
Gono Odhikar Parishad general secretary Rashed Khan urged the commission to bar Awami League-loyals from contesting the JS polls as independent candidates.
Socialist Party of Bangladesh chief coordinator Masud Rana said that the current Tk聽50,000 security deposit would prevent poor aspirants from running as candidates and recommended that the amount should be reduced to Tk10,000.
Nagorik Oikko president Mahmudur Rahman Manna, Jamaat assistant secretary general Hamidur Rahman Azad, BNP acting chairman鈥檚 adviser Mahadi Amin, Bangladesh Labour Party president Mostafizur Rahman Iran, National Citizen Party chief coordinator Nasiruddin Patwary and senior joint member secretary Tasnim Jara, Insaniyat Bangladesh secretary general Sheikh Raihan Rahbar, Bangladesh Republican Party chairman聽KM Abu Hanif Ridoy, and Bangladesh Minority Janata Party president Sukriti Kumar Mondal also participated in the dialogue.