Dhaka, Nov. 6 -- The Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has revised its earlier position on the timing of the proposed referendum on the July Charter, now urging that it be held before the upcoming national election rather than by the end of November.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin at the Election Commission headquarters in Agargaon on Wednesday, AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, the party's assistant secretary general, said Jamaat would formally submit a memorandum to the chief adviser on Thursday to press its demand.

"We believe the referendum must be held before the parliamentary election," Azad told journalists. "If both are conducted on the same day, the focus will shift toward candidate...