New Delhi

India has decided not to send official observers to Bangladesh’s 13th Parliamentary Elections despite receiving an invitation from Dhaka, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

Responding to queries during the weekly media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that India had been invited to monitor the polls but chose not to participate in the observer process.

“We did receive an invitation for sending observers. We have not sent our observers to Bangladesh to observe the elections,” Jaiswal said.

He added that India would await the outcome of the elections before commenting further on the political mandate.

“We should wait for the outcome of the elections to see what sort of mandate has emerged. Thereafter, we will look at the issues that are there. On the election per se, you know our position — we stand for free, fair, inclusive and credible elections in Bangladesh,” he said.

Bangladesh is currently awaiting results from voting held on Thursday across 299 constituencies, alongside a constitutional referendum on the July National Charter. The polls come nearly two years after the July 2024 uprising that led to the removal of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from office.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s interim government engaged with several international observer delegations ahead of the vote. Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus met representatives from the International Republican Institute (IRI), the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL), and the Voice for Justice Observers in Dhaka earlier this week.

According to statements issued by the Chief Adviser’s office, the IRI delegation was led by former US Congressman David Dreier, while ANFREL’s team was headed by Chairperson Rohana Hettiarachchi. A delegation from the Voice for Justice Observers was led by Hasanat M Husain.

Senior Bangladeshi officials, including Principal Coordinator for the Sustainable Development Goals Lamiya Morshed and Ministry of Foreign Affairs representatives, were present at the meetings.

As per the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing, 394 international observers and 197 foreign journalists are in Bangladesh to monitor the elections. Of the observers, 240 are from bilateral partner countries, including independent European representatives, while 51 are affiliated with global institutions.

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The Awami League has been barred from contesting the polls. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami — which is leading an alliance that includes the National Citizen Party (NCP) — are among the principal contenders, along with other parties under seat-sharing arrangements.