Desk Report: In an interview with BBC’s South Asia correspondent Samira Hussain, published on March 6, 2025, Chief Adviser Prof Mohammad Yunus outlined the potential timeline for the next parliamentary election in Bangladesh, suggesting it could be held between December 2025 and March 2026, depending on the speed at which necessary reforms are implemented.
Yunus emphasized that the election’s timing is contingent upon the completion of reforms aimed at ensuring a free and fair electoral process. “If reforms can be done as quickly as we wish, then December would be the time that we would hold elections. If the reforms take longer, we may need a few more months,” he said.
Regarding the participation of the Awami League in the election, Yunus noted that the decision rests with the party itself. “They [the Awami League] have to decide if they want to do it, I cannot decide for them. The Election Commission decides who participates in the election,” he stated.
When asked about the political and economic situation in Bangladesh, Yunus acknowledged the nation’s current challenges, describing the economy as “shattered” and “devastated.” He likened the country’s difficulties to the aftermath of a “terrible tornado” that had left the nation struggling to rebuild. “It’s as if there’s been some terrible tornado for 16 years, and we’re trying to pick up the pieces,” he explained.
In the interview, Yunus also reflected on Bangladesh’s historical context, asserting that the country has not been without flaws, but acknowledging that it is part of an ongoing process. He stated, “We are not an ideal country or an ideal city that suddenly we made. It’s a continuum of the country that we inherited, a country that’s been running for many, many years.”
Responding to claims by Awami League members that Bangladesh is unsafe for them, Yunus pointed to the country’s legal and law enforcement systems. “There’s a court, there’s a law, there’s a police station, they can go and complain, register their complaint,” he remarked. “You just don’t go to a BBC correspondent to complain, you go to the police station to complain and see whether the law is taking its course.”
Yunus also took the opportunity to discuss the broader political environment, indirectly addressing the current government’s role in the country’s ongoing challenges, while also calling attention to the importance of maintaining peace and order for both the economy and society as a whole.