Iajuddin however continued his efforts to hold the election set for January 22, instead of initiating any move to ensure participation of all political parties in the polls by resolving the crisis.

The president last night held a meeting with the chiefs of the three services and ordered the armed forces to perform their duties appropriately for smooth holding of the election.

Meanwhile, the advisers were not sure if there would be any meeting of the council today, the third day after the Awami League (AL) led-grand alliance's announcement to boycott and resist the election.

Since the alliance's announcement, the advisers have been discussing among themselves possible ways to overcome the crisis. But they cannot initiate any move in this regard before a meeting of the council is held, sources pointed out.

The advisers are also discussing whether it is possible to seek opinion of the Supreme Court (SC) on holding the election by extending the 90-day time limit since dissolution of the immediate past parliament. But they were not sure if they could take a fresh initiative to resolve the crisis as the president seemed indifferent to this, sources said.

"The council of advisers has to find new and innovative ways to see if the time limit for holding the election can be extended," Adviser Shafiqual Haque Choudhury told reporters yesterday.

Talking to The Daily Star, Adviser M Azizul Haque said they will sit soon to discuss different alternatives for resolving the prevailing political crisis. "If necessary, we will seek opinion of constitutional experts," he said in reply to a question on seeking the SC's opinion on holding the election beyond the 90-day time limit.

Responding to a question, another adviser said the situation is getting complicated, and it might not be possible to seek opinion of the SC on extending the time limit for polls as 17 candidates have already been elected unopposed.

Seeking anonymity, he said, " If the Election Commission declares them elected through gazette notification, and they challenge in court any extension of the time limit for holding the election, the situation will get further complicated," the adviser said last night. "Besides, a political consensus is required before seeking opinion of the Supreme Court."

Election Commission (EC) Secretary Abdur Rashid Sarkar however told reporters that they would go for gazette notification after the election.

Sources said the CA on Wednesday night held a meeting of the advisory committee on law and order held to face the political agitation including the countrywide blockade. The meeting decided to use army, if necessary, to foil the agitation.

The meeting also discussed the next course of action if the political parties enforce more agitation. But the CA did not initiate any discussion on resolving the political crisis and holding the election with the participation of all political parties.

Earlier, on several occasions Iajuddin remained silent without convening any meeting of the council of advisers on crucial issues. He did not also consult the advisers before taking some vital decisions, including deployment of army. In such a situation, four advisers quit the council.