United News of Bangladesh

Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Tuesday said the government will encourage foreign nationals who wish to come as election observers but does not want anyone arriving in the guise of the observers with the intention of tarnishing Bangladesh’s reputation. “We will definitely encourage those who want to come as observers. But we do not want anyone to come intentionally to tarnish our reputation in the name of observation,” he said. Talking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hossain reaffirmed the government’s strong commitment to holding a ‘free, fair and transparent’ election in Bangladesh. No response on request for Hasina’s extradition: Touhid Hossain US-based International Republican Institute (IRI), the European Union and the Commonwealth have already sent pre-election assessment missions to Bangladesh. “We think it’s a good sign,” said the Foreign Affairs Adviser, adding that as the election approaches, more delegations will definitely come to observe. “We want election observation to take place so that the transparency, freedom and fairness of the election are clearly demonstrated before everyone,” Hossain added. The interim government plans to hold the 13th parliamentary election in early February next year.