Dhaka, Dec. 13 -- With expatriate Bangladeshis set to vote for the first time in the upcoming parliamentary election, the Election Commission (EC) is planning to start dispatching postal ballot papers to those registered abroad next week.

Two ballot papers will be sent to overseas voters. The EC has asked them to cast their votes and return the envelope via a nearby post box.

Like the registration, a deadline will be set for posting the return envelope, EC officials said.

They added that all materials will go to the polling centres the day before the vote. The postal ballots must reach the country by a specific time before that. This is because if it arrives after the vote, there is no opportunity for counting.

Saleem Ahmad Khan, the ...