Japan on Friday expressed concern over a series of violence during election campaign and hoped that all will play role in ensuring free, fair and peaceful city corporation elections in Bangladesh.

‘We expect all the stakeholders to exercise utmost restraint and strive to play a constructive role to ensure the election campaign and elections to be conducted in a free, fair, and peaceful manner,’ Japan said in a statement.

‘Whatever the case may be, we believe such acts are great disservice to the public, to society and to the people seeking for successful elections,’ it said.