On the first day, the EC secretariat sent letters to about 30 political parties, inviting them to the discussions staggered between July 26 and 28 on the EC premises. The rest of the invitations will be dispatched in a day or two, sources said.

The mainstream opposition parties, which have recently proposed agenda for reforms in the electoral and the caretaker government systems, however have yet to decide whether to participate in the EC-initiated meetings.

"We will talk to our party chief tomorrow before taking any decision," Awami League (AL) General Secretary Abdul Jalil yesterday told The Daily Star.

Convenor of the left 11-party alliance Bimal Biswas said the EC should have taken steps to discuss the overall electoral reforms. "We are not much interested to discuss with the EC partial reforms. The decision, however, would be taken at the 11-party forum," he added.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD-Inu) President Hasanul Haque Inu said they do not have the time to hold talks with a chief election commissioner who does not have the backbone and is loyal to the ruling parties.

The commission on Wednesday at a meeting decided to invite a total of 96 political parties to discuss whether it should go for a fresh voter list or revise the existing one.

The ruling BNP has been requested to sit down with the EC on July 28 while the main opposition AL on July 27. The EC will sit for dialogues with the two major political parties separately while it will meet the others in several sittings, sources said.

An EC secretariat official requesting anonymity told The Daily Star, "We don't think all the political parties will participate in the dialogue. The number may be under 50."