The Election Commission has prepared transparent ballot boxes for postal voting in Dhaka-13 and Dhaka-15, marking the first use of postal ballots in a Jatiya Sangsad election and referendum, scheduled for 12 February.
Dhaka Regional Election Officer Md Yunuch Ali inaugurated the locking of the ballot boxes on Sunday at the Election Training Institute in Agargaon in the presence of candidates’ representatives.
The special arrangement applies to Out of Country Voting and In Country Postal Ballot systems, both being introduced for the first time.
Voting booths have been set up at the institute for Dhaka-13 on the fifth floor and for Dhaka-15 on the sixth floor, officials said.
According to the regional election officer, 14 ballot boxes have been prepared for 5,617 registered voters in Dhaka-13, while 19 boxes have been readied for 7,405 voters in Dhaka-15.
“For the first time in Bangladesh, voters are getting the opportunity to exercise their franchise through postal ballots under the OCB and ICPB systems,” he said.
He said the boxes were sealed with prescribed locks in front of candidates’ representatives and that notifications detailing the lock numbers had already been issued.
Explaining the process, the official said postal ballots would be scanned using barcode machines upon arrival from the postal department, digitally recorded and then stored in the ballot boxes under round-the-clock police guard.
Only postal ballots received by 4:30 pm on 12 February will be accepted and counted, he added.
Additional Regional Election Officer AHM Kamrul Hasan, who is in charge of postal ballots for the two constituencies, said each box had been locked based on a capacity of 400 voters.
He said the ballots would be verified using barcode scanners and recorded in the prescribed form before being placed in the boxes.
During counting after 4:30 pm on polling day, candidates will first verify the lock numbers with official notifications before the boxes are opened and votes counted, he added.
