Dhaka, Dec. 6 -- Postal voting registration for eligible voters within Bangladesh will open on the day the Election Commission (EC) announces the schedule for the 13th national election, according to officials.

The schedule is expected next week, following the EC's courtesy meeting with President Mohammed Shahabuddin on Dec 10. Both the parliamentary election and a national referendum are due to be held on the same day in the second half of February next year.

Postal voting, which is being introduced at scale for the first time, has already drawn strong interest from Bangladeshi expatriates.

Nearly 200,000 overseas voters have registered through the government's "Postal Vote BD" mobile app since its launch on Nov 18.

Salim Ahmad Khan,...