Election Commission (EC) Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed on Thursday stated that the commission is awaiting court rulings on 14 writ petitions filed with the higher judiciary, which challenged the delimitation of parliamentary constituencies.
Speaking to reporters at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital following recent violence linked to the constituency delimitation, Ahmed said, “Many of you have raised questions about the constituency boundaries.
“From what I have learned, 14 writs have been filed from different regions concerning this matter. As it is currently under judicial review, I believe it is sub-judice, and I cannot comment further.”
On September 4, the EC issued a gazette notification finalising the delimitation of constituencies, which included changes to the boundaries of 46 constituencies across 16 districts. The changes also resulted in an increase of one constituency in Gazipur district and a decrease of one in Bagerhat district, ahead of the national election scheduled for February 2026.
Protests erupted in several areas, including Bagerhat, Faridpur, and Brahmanbaria, over the revised boundaries.
The EC Secretary assured that both the petitioners and the Commission have full confidence in the judiciary. “We must wait for the court’s decision,” he added.
Regarding the legal aspect of the issue, he pointed out that while the law states in Section 7 that such matters cannot be challenged in court, the High Court accepted the writ petitions.
“As per the law, every citizen has the fundamental right to file a writ petition. Hence, I don’t believe it’s within my authority to interpret the legal position at this time,” he clarified.
Article 7 of the Delimitation of Constituencies Ordinance, 1976 stipulates that the validity of any constituency delimitation or related proceedings cannot be challenged in any court or before any other authority.
In response to questions about protests and vandalism surrounding the constituency boundary changes, Ahmed condemned the violence, stating that such actions are unjustifiable under any circumstances.
He reiterated that, since the matter is pending judicial review, the Election Commission will adhere to the court’s decision once it is made.
The current commission, headed by Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, has re-demarcated the boundaries of 46 constituencies, including those in districts such as Panchagarh, Rangpur, Sirajganj, Pabna, Bagerhat, Satkhira, Manikganj, Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Faridpur, Shariatpur, Brahmanbaria, Cumilla, Noakhali, and Chattogram.
Notably, the number of constituencies in Gazipur increased from five to six, while Bagerhat saw a decrease from four to three.
Earlier, on July 30, the EC published a draft delimitation for the 300 constituencies, proposing changes to the boundaries of 39 constituencies across 14 districts. Following this, the EC received 1,893 applications containing complaints, claims, and suggestions regarding 84 constituencies.
The Election Commission conducted a four-day hearing from August 24-27 to address these claims, objections, and recommendations regarding the re-demarcation.
Historically, the Election Commission has undertaken multiple constituency re-demarcations ahead of general elections, including changes to 10 constituencies under Kazi Habibul Awal’s tenure before the 12th national election, 25 constituencies before the 2018 election under the KM Nurul Huda-led commission, and 87 constituencies under Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad’s leadership before the 10th parliamentary election.
The ATM Shamsul Huda-led commission also made substantial changes to 133 constituencies ahead of the 9th general election in 2008.
