The election commissioners (ECs) have started visiting districts to see the environment of the 12th national election which is scheduled to be held on January 7.
Three election commissioners will visit different parts of the country to see the voting environment, said sources of the Election Commission.
Election Commissioners Begum Rasheda Sultana, Anisur Rahman and Brigadier General (retired) Ahsan Habib Khan on Thursday were in district tour Dinajpur, Sylhet and Jhenaidah respectively.
During this time of district tour, the Election Commissioners held meetings with government officials, elections officers and law enforcing agencies.
During her Dinajpur tour on Thursday, Begum Rasheda Sultana said that the 12th parliamentary elections will be held on January 7. “We will do whatever the Election Commission has to do while upholding the constitution. We are walking on that path. There is no pressure on us regarding the election. We do not believe in any pressure. There is no unstable atmosphere in the country. We have nothing to say about what will happen in the future. But the environment is what it is, it will be better in the future,” she said.
The Election Commissioner was talking to journalists after a preparatory meeting at the conference of Deputy Commissioner (DC) office in Dinajpur. Returning Officers, Assistant Returning Officers, Officer-in-Charges (OCs) of all police stations and other election-related officials Dinajpur, Panchagarh, Thakurgaon and Nilphamari districts were present in the meeting with Additional Divisional Commissioner (General) of Rangpur Abu Zafar in the chair.
During his Sylhet tour on Thursday, Election Commissioner Anisur Rahman held a meeting with Sylhet and Sunamganj district officials about the national polls. The meeting was held at the conference room of Sylhet District Administration, reports our Sylhet Correspondent.
Talking to journalists after the meeting, Anisur Rahman said that the Election Commission (EC) can consider deferring the date of the national election if ‘one party’ decides to join the polls.
“If the party decides to participate in the 12th national polls, we will consider. We have the scope to defer the schedule as we have sufficient time. But we have not gotten any request in this regard,” he said.
Asked whether the commission has plan to hold the elections with participation of all the registered political parties, he said that the national polls in the past were never participated by hundred percent of registered political parties. If a majority of the parties join the polls, there will be an election atmosphere.
“Till today, we have not seen any disruptions to the election atmosphere. Although there is a political movement centring the polls and scattered incidents are taking place in the country, the situation is not yet threatening to the polls,” said Anisur Rahman.
He also said that the election will not wait for anyone. “As per the constitution, we are bound to arrange polls within a given timeframe. Otherwise, there will be created a constitutional vacuum,” he added.
On the other hand, Brigadier General (Retd) Ahsan Habib Khan told journalists that they are committed to uphold the spirit of the constitution at any cost as it is the constitutional position in any country, reports our Jhenaidah Correspondent.
The candidates will be liable for presenting voters in the poling centres in time, while a lawmaker will be elected even with least votes cast during the polling hours of scheduled date and time, EC Brigadier General (Retd) Ahsan Habib Khan said while replying to the questions of journalists at the conference of Deputy Commissioner (DC) office in Jhenaidah.
He was talking to journalists after holding a meeting with district level and high officials of the district administration, police administration, election officers, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Ansar and Village Defense Party (VDP) and other departments from Jhenaidah, Kushtia, Chuadanga, Meherpur and Magura.
EC Brigadier General (Retd) Ahsan Habib Khan said that they have been conducting preparatory sharing meetings with the media activists, government officials, political personalities and social leaders for a free and fair election.
