Spokesperson for the National Citizen Party (NCP), Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan has stated that it seems to him as if the Election Commission (EC) is conducting its activities under influence of some other entity.
He made this remark after meeting with Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin at the EC building in Agargaon, Dhaka on Monday.
Asif Mahmud said, “It seems to us that the Election Commission has been carrying out some of its activities under influence. For example, we have heard rumours of the EC not keeping Bangladesh National Cadet Corps (BNCC) members at the polling centres in response to a certain party’s demand.
“However, they said today that they are reconsidering this, but our clear demand will remain for BNCC to remain at the centres. Since this election is going to be a bit different, having extra force will help in controlling the law-and-order situation,” Asif Mahmud said.
He further added, “Administrative transfers should have happened neutrally as part of a normal process. We are seeing that perhaps one party is being given a bit of special advantage. If a candidate from a specific party complains, the officer is being withdrawn immediately. In some places, we have seen officers associated with the election behaving abnormally, and in many cases, they are intimidating voters or pressuring them to vote for a specific party. They are calling various business groups.
“In light of this, we have already told the Election Commission about the removal and transfer of some specific officers.”
He also alleged that the EC would not reply to NCP members when their candidates write in complaints regarding various officers.
Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan said, “We have lodged many specific complaints. We hope to get a quick response on these matters. We also expect that the Election Commission will not surprise us with sudden decisions like the one on mobile phones, so that the pre-election environment does not deteriorate in any way.”
