Ruling Bangladesh Awami League (AL) has raised questions about rationality of the election commission’s decision to suspend the by-elections at Gaibandha-5 (Saghata-Phulchari) constituency by watching photos and videos from Dhaka.
The top leaders of the ruling party also think the decision of the election commission (EC) to suspend the election by watching videos from 500 kilometres away is questionable as well.
The party’s general secretary Obaidul Quader said, “I would humbly request the election commission to consider whether it is logical, practical and or legal to take decisions watching photographs and videos footage sitting in Dhaka.”
Obaidul Quader was addressing a programme in the capital city’s Mohammadpur area on Thursday.
“Almost all the presiding officers of the centres, where voting was not suspended from Dhaka, unanimously said the voting was free and fair. There was no chaos at the centres,” said the AL leader, who is also the road transport and bridges minister.
He hoped that the election commission would take appropriate measures in holding free, fair and credible elections.
Mentioning that it was not clear why the voting was stopped in the Gaibandha by-polls, Quader said according to the presiding officers, the voting was suspended at the order of the election officer and the assistant returning officer.
On the same day, information and broadcasting minister Hasan Mahmud said the people of the country are claiming that the decision of the EC is questionable as it suspended the Gaibandha by-polls watching CC camera footage from about 500 kilometers away from the the election area.
“The field-level officials of the election commission have said in writing that the polls were held in a fair manner and there was no violence. For this, the people are claiming that the decision of the commission is questionable,” he told newspersons, replying to a query at the meeting room of his ministry at secretariat in the capital.
Through this decision, the minister said, it is also proved that the elections are always held under the EC and as per their decision. The government has no role in this regard, said Hasan, also Awami League joint general secretary.
Earlier, the election commission shut down one polling centre after the other due to disorder on Wednesday after voting started at the Gaibandha-5 (Saghata-Fulchhari) by-election.
By the afternoon, votes in one third of the polling centres were cancelled. Eventually, not being able to bring the situation under control, the EC declared a complete halt to the voting by around 2:30 in the afternoon.
There has hardly ever been a precedent where voting was brought to a complete halt in a parliamentary seat due to allegations of all sorts of discrepancies, including several persons entering the confidential polling booth at one time, people’s votes being cast by others and the agents of various candidates being forced out of the centres.