‘EC won’t favour any political party’

Staff reporter:

The Election Commission said that the Commission would not act in favour of any political party and is committed to hold a free, fair, peaceful and creditable parliamentary poll.

While addressing a new round of talks with registered political parties in the capital on Sunday, Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin said, “We cannot work for anyone. Some assume we are neutral only when we take their side. That’s not how this institution operates. We will follow our conscience and the country’s laws. That is our duty to the people.”

Nasir Uddin described the dialogue as an effort to build cooperation ahead of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad Election.

He explained that the Commission wanted political parties to help uphold the election code of conduct and strengthen the collective commitment to a peaceful and acceptable poll.

“Everyone wants a good election, and we are accountable to the nation for that,” he said. “We need your cooperation to ensure discipline and fairness.”

He acknowledged that earlier reform bodies had already eased some of the Commission’s workload by identifying key issues and gathering views from political actors.

He added that the start of the dialogue had been delayed because of the busy schedules of national leaders and the Commission’s own internal pressure, but said he was confident the consultations would be completed smoothly with support from all parties.

“One of the biggest threats to the election”, the CEC warned, “is the rapid spread of misinformation and malicious content on social media, much of it produced with artificial intelligence.”

“This is a new challenge that earlier commissions did not have to face,” he said. “A lot of falsehoods are coming from outside the country. Tackling this has become a major headache. But with your support, we can overcome this as well.”

Nasir Uddin also highlighted a major change in the upcoming election: the introduction of postal voting for the first time in Bangladesh’s electoral history, including for expatriates.

He said the Commission had taken on a tough challenge, noting that even many advanced democracies had struggled to make postal voting work.

“This year we have introduced several new steps. Postal voting for expatriates is a complex issue and has never been tried before. Many countries couldn’t implement it, but we have taken it up and already started trials,” he said.

The CEC pointed out that preparing for the election required enormous manpower, including more than 77,000 field workers who received special training to update the voter list.

He said the Commission was also preparing arrangements for groups who often miss the chance to vote on election day, such as law enforcement officers, presiding officers, government employees on duty, and eligible detainees.

“They are citizens as well, and they deserve the opportunity to vote,” he said.

Meanwhile, addressing the political party leaders, Election Commissioner Md Anwarul Islam Sarkar reinforced the Commission’s message, saying the EC was doing everything needed to ensure a free, fair and credible election.

“We have no alternative but to run a good election,” he said. “And for that, the cooperation of political parties is essential.”

Sarkar said the Commission planned to deploy nearly nine lakh members of the law enforcement agencies across the country.

He added that around 43,000 presiding officers had been selected nationwide and that the EC was working to ensure they remained firm and impartial.

“They are the key figures in the field,” he said. “We want them to be strong, fair, and confident.”
He pointed out that the updated election code of conduct includes tough provisions, including cancellation of candidacy and even the annulment of an entire constituency if rules are broken.

“The laws are strong enough and have delivered good elections before,” he said. “We know the Commission has made mistakes in the past. We are standing on that pile of mistakes, and we want to correct them with your help.”

The morning session of the dialogue included Gano Forum, Gano Front, Islamic Front Bangladesh, Islami Oikya Jote, Bangladesh Supreme Party and Bangladesh Jatiya Party.

In the afternoon, representatives from Bangladesh JSD, Bangladesh NAP, Trinamool BNP, Krishak Sramik Janata League, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish and Islami Andolan Bangladesh joined the discussions.

The Commission will meet 12 more political parties on Monday, including Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, as part of its three-day dialogue series.

As preparations gather pace, the Commission says the success of the upcoming election will depend not only on administrative efforts but also on cooperation from political leaders, who hold significant influence over the electorate.