The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has urged the Election Commission not to involve students in the process of the 13th National Parliamentary Election. The call was made during a meeting on February 1 with Chief Election Commissioner A.M.M. Nasir Uddin at the Election Building. BNP Standing Committee member Nazrul Islam Khan told reporters after the meeting that engaging students in such a complex political process could make them and their institutions controversial.

Khan said the party advised the commission to assign only those authorized under law enforcement regulations to election duties. He mentioned that the commission acknowledged the logic of BNP’s concerns and would discuss the matter before making a decision. BNP also raised issues about rumors of forming “peace committees,” the presence of political activists outside their constituencies, the large number of local election observers, and alleged irregularities in voter migration data.

The Election Commission reportedly assured BNP that it had not decided to form any peace committees and would take steps to prevent disorder and investigate voter list anomalies.