He made the remarks while speaking to journalists at a briefing at the Secretariat on Thursday (November 27).
Responding to a question about which constituency he plans to contest from, Asif Mahmud said, “I have announced that I will contest the election, but I have not yet mentioned the constituency.”
Addressing concerns about contesting the election while holding a government position, he said, “There is discussion that some others in the government may also participate in the election. There is no law or restriction preventing advisors to the interim government—or anyone—from contesting. However, contesting while holding a government position creates a conflict of interest. From a policy standpoint, I believe anyone wishing to contest should resign before entering the electoral process. I am preparing accordingly. I will share further details after discussions with senior officials.”
When asked which political party he would represent, the advisor declined to comment, saying, “It is better not to discuss political matters at this moment.”
Earlier in the day, Asif Mahmud inaugurated public libraries in 44 upazilas across 11 districts in memory of the martyrs of the July Uprising. Each library was built at a cost of Tk 5.3 million, with the total project expenditure amounting to Tk 233.2 million.
“Good books guide people in the right direction. I hope these libraries will help create an educated, humane and creative generation,” he said, adding that similar libraries would be established in the remaining upazilas within the next year.
He also noted that the interim government is prioritising efforts to reduce the development gap in northern Bangladesh. While the national poverty rate stands at 19.2 percent, the rate in Rangpur division is 25 percent, and literacy in several upazilas remains below 50 percent. In this context, he said, the establishment of public libraries is highly significant—not merely as book storage facilities but as centres for knowledge, research and creative thinking.
These new public libraries have been built in 44 upazilas across Rangpur, Lalmonirhat, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon, Kurigram, Nilphamari, Panchagarh and Gaibandha districts of Rangpur division; Phulpur upazila of Mymensingh district in Mymensingh division; Muradnagar upazila of Comilla district in Chittagong division; and Debhata upazila of Satkhira district in Khulna division.
