EC, govt clash over UP election dates
Graphics: Agamir Somoy
Election Commission (EC) said the Union Parishad (UP) elections would be held in seven phases starting 12 November. However, just a few hours after the EC’s announcement on Monday, the government claimed that it knew nothing about the dates for the UP elections.
Government officials, including the State Minister of Local Government Mir Shahe Alam and the Information Adviser Zahed Ur Rahman, added that they were unaware of the EC’s announcement and noted that the decision on when to hold local government elections rests with the government.
Shahe Alam remarked that the EC is independent and holds the constitutional power to conduct elections. Regarding this, he said, “In the case of local government elections, the EC announces the date after holding discussions with the government according to prevailing rules.”
Zahed added that the government will make the decision on when the local government elections will be held. In organizing such elections, the EC must make decisions through discussion and coordination with the government.
EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed noted that the published schedule is not final. The final schedule for the local government elections will be determined after a meeting with the ministry and stakeholders on Thursday. Pre-preparatory discussions took place for two day and the schedule mentioned is a tentative or initial schedule.
He informed that the elections are initially planned to be held in five phases, alongside two reserve phases, making a total plan to organize the elections in seven phases. Based on the meeting, EC will determine the final schedule.
When asked about the statement of the state minister, Akhtar said, “I will not give any counter-opinion on the comment made by him.”
When asked whether the EC had announced the election date without consulting the government, Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud told the media, “The date we announced is tentative. The date will be finalized after the meeting. We will take the final decision only after that discussion.”
When asked if the EC had received any formal letter from the Local Government Division regarding the arrangement of the elections, Masud said, “I have no information regarding this matter.”
Protesting the contradictory statements between responsible figures of the EC and the government regarding the date and process of the local government elections, the NCP also expressed concern over the independent role of the Election Commission.
Meanwhile, the National Citizen Party (NCP) protested the contradictory statements made by the EC officials and the government regarding the election date and process, adding that the incident has created doubts regarding whether the local government elections will be fair and neutral.
In a joint statement, NCP Convener Nahid Islam and Member Secretary Akhter Hossen said the statement by EC Secretary Akhtar has made the questions surrounding the independence of the EC even stronger.
