TDS Desk:

Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin on Tuesday said the Election Commission wants to wipe out the stigma left by three disputed past elections by delivering a credible poll and demonstrating the rule of law in practice.

Speaking to on Tuesday morning at a coordination meeting with district commissioners, superintendents of police, and field administrators ahead of the 13th national parliamentary election, Nasir Uddin said the commission was determined to prove that the law applies equally to all.

Addressing DCs and SPs, he instructed the field administration to enforce the law without fear or favour. “No offender should be spared,” he said, adding that a good election was the only way to shed the label of bad ones.

The meeting, chaired by the Election Commission secretary, was attended by the four other election commissioners as special guests. Senior officials including the cabinet secretary, the chief adviser’s principal secretary, the senior secretaries of the home affairs and public administration ministries, and the inspector general of police were also present at the briefing.

Under the Election schedule, the deadline for submitting nomination papers is December 29. Scrutiny of nominations will run from December 30 to January 4, 2026. Candidates may appeal returning officers’ decisions between January 5 and 9, with appeals to be settled from January 10 to 18.

The final date for withdrawing candidacy is set at January 20. Returning officers will publish the final candidates’ list and allocate election symbols on January 21. Campaigning will begin on January 22 and may continue until 7:30 a.m. on February 10. The parliamentary poll and a national referendum are set for February 12, 2026.