Bangladesh’s interim chief adviser Muhammad Yunus said he will formally ask the Election Commission to stage national elections in February 2026, setting the first polling date since mass protests forced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from office a year ago. Yunus announced the timetable on 5 August—during a televised address and at a rally attended by tens of thousands in Dhaka marking the uprising’s anniversary—while unveiling a “July Declaration” that seeks constitutional recognition of the 2024 student-led revolt and outlines a roadmap for democratic reform. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate pledged that the vote would be “peaceful, fair and transparent” and insisted that future governments be prevented from drifting toward “fascism.” The declaration proposes strengthening independent institutions and overhauling security forces, although critics warn the reforms could remain largely symbolic without parliamentary consensus. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party welcomed the timetable but reiterated calls for an earlier ballot, while Hasina’s Awami League remains suspended as authorities investigate alleged human-rights abuses during last year’s unrest. Yunus said dialogue with parties and civil society will continue as the caretaker administration prepares to hand power to an elected government.