Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal today said his office would announce the schedule of the upcoming 12th general elections in October this year while the polls would be held in late December or early January of the next year.

“It is not possible to announce the schedule before October,” Awal told reporters at a media briefing replying to a question.

Asked when the elections could be held the CEC said “not before the last week of December”.

“The election will be held in the last week of December (2023) or first week of January (2024),” Awal said.

The CEC said he earlier had commented to a newspaper that the schedule might be announced in September keeping in mind the constitutional obligation to declare it within 90 days ahead of the polls.

Later, he said, the commission observed that it was not possible ahead of October.