AHMED DEEPTO

Elections to local government bodies are expected to begin with union parishad polls in October, with the schedule likely to be announced in August.

Polls to around 4,581 union parishads, the lowest tier of local government, will be held in four or five phases. The Election Commission will then continue the process in stages for other tiers -- city corporations, municipalities, upazila councils, and district councils.

“We are planning to begin phase-wise union parishad elections in October. The schedule may be announced in August,” Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud told this newspaper yesterday.

“If union parishad and municipal elections are not held, upazila elections cannot be conducted. Chairmen of union councils and municipalities are ex-officio members of upazila councils. Therefore, union parishad and municipal elections must come first,” Masud explained.

“City corporation elections can be held at any point in between, but district council elections must come at the very last,” he said.

Bangladesh has 13 city corporations, 500 upazila councils, 61 district councils, and 4,581 union councils.

No local government polls have been held in over two years, leaving the commission with a significant backlog as the tenures of many bodies have already expired.

The elections will mark the first major nationwide political contest since the February national election. It is crucial for restoring elected leadership to local government institutions that have largely been run by

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