DHAKA, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh's cabinet Monday approved an amendment to the electoral law aimed at paving the way for the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in the upcoming national elections.

After the cabinet meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, Spokesman Mohammad Shafiul Alam told reporters that the cabinet gave its approval to the amendment to "Representation of the People Order (RPO)".

Last month Bangladesh's highest economic policy-making body approved a project worth nearly half a billion U.S. dollars to procure 150,000 electronic voting machines.

Bangladeshi Election Commission plans to introduce the EVMs in the national polls slated for December.

Commission Secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed said earlier that the commission plans to hold the country's 11th national election in the third week of December as the term of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ruling Awami League (AL) party will end in January 2019.

Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies have long been opposing the use of EVMs in the national polls for fear that this might create opportunity for vested interest groups to digitally manipulate election results using the EVMs.