Staff Reporter :
Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, secretary of Citizens for Good Governance (SHUJAN) and head of the Electoral System Reform Commission, formed by the interim government, has stated that elections will “not be unacceptable” without the participation of the Awami League (AL).
According to Dr Majumdar, the AL has severely damaged the electoral system in Bangladesh by holding “dummy, one-sided, and midnight” elections.
Dr Majumdar made these remarks on Saturday, 14 September, while addressing a shadow parliament debate competition organised by Debate for Democracy at the FDC Auditorium in Dhaka.
The event was presided over by Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiran, Chairman of Debate for Democracy.
Dr Majumdar expressed, “Those involved in the destruction of the electoral system should be brought to justice.
In the last three parliamentary elections, almost everyone connected with the election, including the Election Commission, police, administration, returning officers, and polling officers, were involved in criminal activities.”
He further emphasised that the Election Commission (EC) had violated the Constitution by allowing partisan control of the electoral process under various pretexts.
He criticised the EC for its negligence concerning the attack on the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) Naya Paltan rally on 28 October, which, in his opinion, was an attempt to exclude the party from the elections.
He also pointed out the failure of the EC to ensure a level playing field for all political parties.
Addressing the need for accountability, Dr Majumdar stated that “The issue of trial for all those accused of electoral crimes should be seriously considered.”
He added, “The current government is not a caretaker government.
The caretaker government was a routine administration. The interim government is struggling to clean up the damage of the last 15 to 16 years. Delaying national elections further could erode public confidence in the interim government.”
In his speech, Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiran, Chairman of Debate for Democracy, reminded the audience that the people had not forgotten the irregularities during past elections.
He said, “We have not forgotten how votes were cast the night before the elections. Votes were submitted in the names of deceased individuals, as well as those living abroad. Even children voted. In some places, 100 percent turnout was reported.”