Dhaka - Bangladesh's election authorities have began fresh talks with major political groups to seek a consensus on changing the December election date, officials said Saturday.

Chief Election Commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda was expected to meet leaders of the Awami League-led alliance to discuss their main rival's call to move the poll date from December 18 to December 28.

The leaders of Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led alliance on Friday demanded the new election, as well as lifting the state of emergency and a review of electoral laws that allow election authorities to cancel candidacies.

London, Nov. 22 : Doubts are being expressed in British Government circles about a new law that will see the minimum age at which foreigners can come to Britain to get married being increased.

There is a view that this law will invite opposition from immigrant communities, particularly Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, who have been involved in most forced marriage cases in the country.

New York  - A three-member United Nations panel is scheduled to visit Bangladesh next week to assist the caretaker government there in organizing parliamentary elections, the UN said Friday.

The Bangladeshi government requested UN help to assess the situation and make preparations for the elections in December. The panel will visit the country Sunday to November 29.

The UN said the panel will "assess the preparations and conduct of the elections through visits to Bangladesh before and during the elections."

Dhaka  - Former Bangladeshi prime ministers and arch political rivals Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia exchanged greetings Friday at a reception to honour the country's military. It was their first face-to-face meeting in 18 years.

Private television channels aired live footage of the two meeting at the Armed Forces Day reception in Senakunja in the Dhaka cantonment. They shook hands and exchanged small talk.

Dhaka - Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia Thursday night announced that her party and allies would join the December election if the poll was deferred by 10 days.

"We will definitely join the elections if they take place on December 28," Zia, who leads the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led four-party alliance, told a press conference.

She also asked the country's military-backed government to launch fresh round of talks to ensure participation of all the parties in the election to return the South Asian nation to democracy.

The interim administration on Tuesday reaffirmed that it would hold parliamentary and local government elections according to schedule on December 18 and 28 respectively.

Dhaka  - Bangladesh's military-backed government announced Wednesday it would hold December elections according to the announced schedules, despite the demands of a leading party not being met.

The announcement came an hour before the expiry of a deadline set by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, which had demanded the government delay the poll and allow her party to join.

The parliamentary and upazila (local council) elections would be held according to the previously announced schedule "as there had been no consensus between the political alliances ... (and the) government despite ... all our effort," said Hossain Zillur Rahman, a key adviser to the interim government.