Dhaka - Bangladesh will announce a fresh general election date on Sunday to replace the December 18 poll which has been cancelled, a top election official said Saturday.

"There will be no voting on December 18. We will announce a fresh schedule for the general elections tomorrow," Chief Election Commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda told reporters.

He was speaking after a meeting with the leaders of the Awami League-led alliance at his office. The alliance leaders said they would give their reaction later.

"It is a matter between the Election Commission and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led alliance. We want the election to take place as per the previously announced dates," said Syed Ashraful Islam, who led a six-member delegation at the talks with the commission to discuss their main rival's call to move the poll date from December 18 to December 28.

The Election Commission started the fresh talks with major political groups to seek a consensus on changing the December election date after the failure of a similar dialogue, initiated by the military-backed government.

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.

"Our preparations for election are hampered as a result of the election authorities' delay in giving the decision," BNP secretary- general Khadaker Delwar Hossain said Saturday.

But the Awami League has been opposing any change in polls date. "It is not clear to me why a quarter wants prolonging of the state of emergency by deferring the elections. People now want a free environment," Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina Wajed told reporters after her first meeting in 18 years with arch political rival Khaleda Zia, the BNP chief.

Zia on Thursday announced that her party and allies would join the polls provided her demands were met. She also asked the military- backed government to launch fresh talks for a credible elections.

The Election Commission on Thursday extended the deadline for filing candidacies by three more days and moved the deadline for the withdrawal of nomination papers to December 3.

The government has relaxed provisions of its emergency rule to allow limited electioneering by the parties and candidates for the general election.

On Friday, the United Nations set up a high-level panel to assess Bangladesh's preparation for its parliamentary polls slated for December.

The three-member panel, headed by Francesc Vendrell, the former Special Representative in Afghanistan of the European Union, is expected to arrive in Dhaka Sunday to prepare a report on election preparations. dpa