The election will be held over seven stages from April 11 in what will be the world's biggest democratic exercise, the Election Commission said on Sunday, when a code of conduct over election campaigning came into force. Citing the code, the commission said "no advertisements shall be issued in electronic and print media highlighting the achievements of the govt. Leading English-language national dailies including the Times of India, the Hindustan Times and the Indian Express carried no government ads on Monday. Some people took to Twitter to express their frustration with what they regarded as the excessive advertising. The Directorate of Advertising & Visual Publicity, a government agency which coordinates with ministries on government ads, did not respond to a request for comment.

Source: Dhaka Tribune March 11, 2019 16:18 UTC