The interim government has approved the draft of an ordinance that will allow the national referendum and the 13th parliamentary election to be held on the same day, with voters using colour-printed ballots to distinguish between the two.
The decision, taken on Tuesday at a special meeting of the Council of Advisers chaired by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, marks a major administrative and political undertaking for an election system already under pressure.
Under the draft Referendum Ordinance 2025, parliamentary ballots will be printed in black and white, while referendum ballots will be issued in colour to reduce confusion for voters. The ordinance also permits postal voting in the referendum — including for expatriates — in what officials describe as an attempt to broaden participation.
Speaking after the meeting at the Foreign Service Academy, Law Adviser Asif Nazrul said the colour differentiation was intended to make voting “easier for voters” as they cast two ballots on the same day. He said the ordinance, which outlines the full legal framework for holding the referendum, would be gazetted within a day.
The referendum will ask citizens a single question: whether they consent to implementing the July National Constitution Reform Order 2025 and the set of constitutional reform proposals contained in the July Charter. The ballot will contain two boxes — Yes and No — for voters to indicate approval or rejection.
Earlier on 13 November, the chief adviser had announced that the referendum would coincide with the national election scheduled for February, though the Election Commission (EC) has not yet announced an exact date. Election Commissioner Abul Fazl Md Sanuallah has said the schedule for the 13th National Election will be unveiled in the first half of December.
The government says the referendum will present four major proposals for public approval. These include adopting the July Charter’s guidelines for forming the caretaker government, Election Commission and other constitutional bodies during the election period; establishing a bicameral parliament with a 100-member upper house elected proportionally; and making the 30 reform commitments agreed by political parties — such as judicial independence, expanded presidential powers, limits on the prime minister’s tenure, stronger local government, and increased representation of women — binding on whichever party forms the next government. The remaining charter reforms will also be implemented in line with the commitments stated by parties. These 30 reform items will be annexed to the Referendum Ordinance.
According to decisions taken at Tuesday’s meeting, the referendum will be held at the same polling centres designated for the parliamentary election, using the same voter list, polling staff and administrative chain of command. The referendum ballot will be separate from the parliamentary ballot, and both votes will be conducted simultaneously. Presiding officers will have the authority to suspend voting at a centre if polling is obstructed; the EC may order re-polling only if it determines that results cannot be reliably compiled without that centre.
EC Secretary Akhter Hossain told reporters that voter lists for each polling centre would be ready by 5 December, and that ballot boxes, indelible ink and stamp pads were already stocked in adequate quantities. “Ballots will be printed in black on white paper for the national election, while coloured paper will be used for the referendum,” he said. Expatriates, he added, will be able to vote in the referendum through postal ballots.
Officials say they hope the arrangements will minimise confusion on election day, although holding two nationwide votes simultaneously will demand an unprecedented level of coordination from the EC.
