Preparations for local government elections are under way, and the electoral process will begin once necessary arrangements are completed, local government minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Monday.
He made the remarks while responding to a question from Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Zahirul Islam during a question-and-answer session in Jatiya Sangsad, presided over by speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed.
Local government elections are held in phases, and completing polls at all levels typically takes between 10 months and one year, the minister said in reply to a question from independent lawmaker Rumeen Farhana.
He said that announcing an election schedule involves several considerations, including preparation of voter lists, procurement of election materials, religious festivals, public examinations, weather conditions, finalisation and renovation of polling centres, and the appointment and training of election officials.
At least 45 days are required for preliminary preparations before the announcement of the schedule, he added.
Responding to a question from BNP lawmaker Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, the minister said that a project to procure 150,000 electronic voting machines, with an estimated cost of Tk 3,825.34 crore, was implemented between July 2018 and June 2024.
He said that the machines were procured through the Bangladesh Army under a delegated procurement method and that the project had been completed.
Although the project completion report was submitted to the Implementation Evaluation Division on May 13, 2025, the evaluation report has not yet been received, he said.
Audit objections raised by the Audit Directorate remain unresolved, and an investigation into the project is ongoing under the Anti-Corruption Commission, he added.
The minister further informed parliament that the Election Commission has decided not to use EVMs in any national or local elections.
He said that the machines are currently being stored in various warehouses, at the Bangladesh Machine Tools Factory, and in the basement of the Election Commission Secretariat.
Responding to a separate question from lawmaker Md Elias Mollah, the minister said that in December 2024 the interim government’s Public Administration Reform Commission formally recommended the creation of two new divisions, Faridpur and Cumilla.
He said that the proposed Faridpur division would comprise five districts currently under Dhaka division. They are Faridpur, Madaripur, Rajbari, Gopalganj and Shariatpur.
The minister said that a final decision would be taken at a meeting of the National Implementation Committee for Administrative Reorganisation.
