Bangladesh Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasiruddin has said that ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League can participate in the election unless the government or the judiciary imposes a ban.The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) said this during a meeting with poll officials at the Chittagong Circuit House on Monday.

Naseeruddin said- Election Commission is independent

AMM Nasiruddin also assured that the Election Commission operates with complete independence and does not face any external pressure. We are committed to taking necessary steps to ensure fair and transparent elections, he said. The CEC also acknowledged the issue of bogus voters in previous elections and blamed mistrust in the voting process for the decline in voter registration.

Voter list will be updated in six months

Naseeruddin said that he has informed about the plan to start updating the voter list soon. This work is expected to be done within six months. He said that since August 5, significant progress has been made in promoting national consensus on electoral matters. This year's elections will not be held on the previous pattern.

What did BNP say?

A few days earlier, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party had said that chief adviser Muhammad Yunus' suggestion to set the minimum voting age at 17 years would put pressure on the Election Commission and could delay the poll process.