Chief Adviser’s Deputy Press Secretary Apurba Jahangir on Sunday said there has been no date from Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus regarding the national election yet, stressing that Education and Planning Adviser Prof Wahiduddin Mahmud’s comment is entirely his personal. “It is fully his (Adviser Wahiduddin) personal opinion,” he said, clarifying from the CA’s press wing during a media briefing at Foreign Service Academy. Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud on Saturday said he would like to see a politically elected government next year. Diplomats from EU member states to meet CA Dr Yunus Monday "I think we'll see a politically elected government next year. This is my opinion, but I'm not sure what will happen," he told a conference organised by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS). Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Sunday said reform was the key word of the July-August student-led mass uprising and his government is committed to carrying out major reforms before holding a "free and fair" election. He said the interim government would act as a facilitator of the reform process and has set up 15 reform commissions so far to fix key institutions left broken by the dictatorship of Sheikh Hasina. Prof Yunus made the remarks when Lord Mark Malloch-Brown, an adviser to the IMF and World Bank and a former head of UNDP, met him at the State Guest House Jamuna.

Expressing Dhaka’s willingness to strengthen ties with Delhi, Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Sunday said Bangladesh certainly wants to see its relations with India at a better place focusing on “fairness, equity and dignity.” “We will surely want the relations with India to be in a better position so that peoples from both sides get benefitted. At the same time, we want the relations based on fairness, equity and dignity. That is our focus,” he said. The Press Secretary was briefing reporters at the Foreign Service Academy on Sunday evening. CA’s Deputy Press Secretaries Apurba Jahangir and Abul Kalam Azad Majumder were also present. Alam highlighted the long-standing historical, cultural and linguistic ties between the two neighbouring nations. Amid strained ties and growing criticisms from both sides on post-August 5 issues, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri is scheduled to arrive here on Monday to hold several meetings apart from attending the foreign secretary-level talks to address mutual concerns. CA Dr Yunus reiterates key reforms to hold free polls CA’ Deputy Press Secretary Apurba said the Indian Foreign Secretary is likely to meet Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus. This is going to be the first visit to be made by a senior Indian government official to Bangladesh since the interim government, led by Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, came to power on August 8. Foreign Secretary Misri and his Bangladesh counterpart, Md Jashim Uddin, will lead their respective delegation at the Bangladesh-India Foreign Office Consultations (FOC). Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday that the FOC led by the Foreign Secretaries is a structured engagement between Bangladesh-India. "We look forward to this meeting," he said. Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Mohammad Rafiqul Alam said there are always efforts to keep all the elements of the bilateral relations on agenda. He, however, said there are some broad areas - trade, border management, connectivity and water issues - and these will be discussed.

Portraying the undiscovered night life of Dhaka from a young filmmaker's perspective, Apurba Jahangir directed short-film Dhaka An Opera is scheduled to have it's virtual premiere on Saturday evening at Lagvelki.com, the first pay per movie OTT platform in Bangladesh.