Staff Reporter :
Authorities are gearing up security plans for the 13th parliamentary election, slated for the first half of February, ahead of Ramadan.
The Election Commission will formally announce the schedule, Home Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said on Saturday.
“The verdict must be announced on 17 November. The law enforcement agencies have already completed their preparations so that no untoward incident occurs anywhere in the country,” The Adviser said it to reporters at the Patuakhali Circuit House.
According to the adviser, the political atmosphere has already shifted towards election mode, with parties declaring their candidates and making preparations for what he insisted would be a “peaceful” poll.
He outlined a nine-day special security deployment for the election period – five days before polling, election day itself, and three days after – aimed at maintaining strict law and order.
Special nationwide operations will also be carried out in the run-up to the vote.
A large security contingent is planned: around 1.5 lakh police personnel, 5.5 lakh Ansar members, 35,000 from the Border Guard Bangladesh, 8,000 Rapid Action Battalion members, 5,000 navy personnel, 4,000 from the Coast Guard, and close to 100,000 soldiers.
The army currently has 30,000 personnel deployed, a number expected to rise sharply.
Jahangir highlighted the expanded role of Ansar this year, saying the force will be equipped with weapons and body cameras to strengthen monitoring and ensure effective poll management.
“There is no room for doubt regarding security. The election will be held very peacefully,” he said.
Earlier, the adviser visited the Bangladesh Coast Guard base and Patuakhali Police Lines before travelling to Kuakata, where he is scheduled to inspect the Tourist Police and River Police camps.
