Coaching centres arrange various model tests ahead of public examinations at the SSC and HSC level. Each of them tries to attract students and their guardians, proclaiming their respective model tests as the best. Their campaign is quite successful. Ahead of public examinations and admission, huge crowds throng around the coaching centres.
Like model tests of coaching centres, there is talk of model tests before the national and local elections. The people first faced the model test in the election of 1973. Opposition parties were not allowed to submit nomination papers. Ballot boxes were brought to Dhaka by helicopters and the pro-government candidates were declared winners. Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad, who was involved in the conspiracy of the Bangabandhu murder, was also a part of this underhand design.
Afterward, two military rulers introduced model tests, which is called referendum. Ayub Khan introduced a referendum during the Pakistani rule. Military rulers Ziaur Rahman and Hussain Muhammad Ershad too followed the referendum in independent Bangladesh. In that referendum, there were instances of casting 99 per cent votes in some places while results were declared in some centres within a few minutes of votes being cast.
The second parliamentary elections were held during the rule of Ziaur Rahman. The party, which came into being a few months back at the time, got 207 seats. Awami League, which led the liberation war, got only 39 seats. In that election, Ziaur Rahman didn't reject any party, right or left. Small parties were given one or two seats.
Hussain Mohmmad Ershad imposed military rule before the completing of the tenure of that parliament. Later measures had been taken on what happened during the military rule. Ershad formed a new party bringing in leaders from different political parties. Two elections were held during the Ershad period in 1986 and 1988. The ruling Jatiya Party secured 153 and 251 seats respectively. Although the BNP and left-leaning five-party alliance boycotted the 3rd parliamentary election elections, Awami League participated in it and bagged 76 seats. According to analysts, the political relationship Awami League built with the Jatiya Party had started in 1986. At that time JaPa used Awami League against BNP and now Awami League is using JaPa against BNP.
After the fall of military ruler Ershad, an interim government led by Justice Shahbuddin Ahmed was formed in 1991 and the 5th parliamentary election was held. Proving the predictions of many false, BNP won the election. Although Awami League made allegations of minor vote rigging, people did not believe that. Again when Awami League won the election in 1996, BNP made allegations of massive vote rigging. However, the local and foreign observers termed the election fair.
The main problem of our political leadership is that when a party is defeated, it rejects the results. Although the politics is about the people, politicians are not ready to accept the verdict of the people. The politicians use force so that the people fear to cast their votes.
The direction of the political arena of Bangladesh changed after BNP's Magura model by-elections. Afterwards, the model of elections started changing. The people recently saw another model of an election in Brahmanbaria. The by-election was held there as BNP's former member of parliament Abdus Sattar, following directives from the party, resigned from the parliament. Although he became an independent candidate in the by-election, Awami League used all forces to ensure victory of Abdus Sattrar. Local journalists and those who went from Dhaka to cover the election said the administration also worked for Abdus Sattar. This is also another model of Bangladeshi election.
Whatever happens in the national election, local government elections are held in a festive atmosphere. Even candidates without any political affiliation would win in the election. Party candidates also won. Whatever party identities the elected representatives had, local government organisations including union parishad, upazila parishad, or city corporation and municipality would have got utmost priority. During the rule of BNP, Awami League had mayors in two big city corporations and during the rule of Awami League, BNP had mayors of a number of city corporations. Thus there was a balance of power in politics.
But after the Awami League took the decision to hold local government elections under party banners, the local government bodies turned into organisations of a party. Now it is not important who has been elected. The important thing is which party is in power. This is also another model of our democracy and elections.
The ruling party cites Rangpur City Corporation as a model of free and fair elections. Jatiya Party won the election despite being the ruling party candidate. But we don't understand how an election where there is no strong candidate, becomes a model. Awami League's supporters and its nominated candidates never win in Dinajpur municipality as mayor or chairman. That does not mean that another model election has to be arranged there dropping Awami League. A fair election means participation of all parties and competitive elections.
We have seen the Magura model of election and the Rangpur model of election. The people have recently observed a number of 'model elections'. The election of Brahmanbaria has been mentioned earlier. People have also seen how the elections were held in the remaining five seats---how the voting was held, what percentage of people cast their votes and what percentage of voters were absent. The chief election commissioner himself said 15 to 25 per cent of votes were cast. That means 75 to 85 per cent of voters are absent.
Now the question is, in which model will the next national election be held? There must be a political negotiation for the participation of all political parties. If the election is held in the Brahmanbaria model, the government and the ruling party will determine who will be the candidates, where they will contest from and who will not contest, who should go to the polling stations or who should not. And if the elections are held in Rangpur model, the election will be held dropping the main opposition party BNP. That model will be called the 15 February (1996) model. BNP claimed that 20 per cent votes were cast while Awami League claimed only 3 per cent.
*This article, originally published in Prothom Alo print edition, has been rewritten in English by Rabiul Islam.