Bangladesh Jamaaat-e-Islami on Monday asked the Election Commission to be prepared mentally to arrange the referendum on the July National Charter 2025 on a separate day in November next before the 13th parliamentary election, said its Nayeb-e-Ameer Dr Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher.
“We’ve told them that the referendum and the national election are on two separate days...you, take preparation mentally for conducting these separately,” he told reporters after a meeting between a Jamaat delegation and the Commission in the capital.
A five-member Bangladesh Jamaaat-e-Islami delegation, led by Dr Taher, met the Election Commission at Nirbachan Bhaban.
Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, four election commissioners and the EC Senior Secretary were present in the marathon meeting that lasted for two and a half hours.
Dr Taher said if the referendum and the national election are held in a single day simultaneously, it would undermine the importance of the reform or the July National Charter.
“We’ve asked to hold the referendum in November,” he said, replying to a question.
The Jamaat leader said if both votes were held the same day, voters might prioritise their party symbol rather than the national reform issue. On the balloting day, voters will rush to cast votes for their party, not paying concentration to the referendum ballot. If held separately, people will return the next time with a reform-oriented mindset. The people of this country want reform,” he said.
“We think that if it (two elections) happens on the same day, then the reform issue will become a minor one. Because everyone will remain concerned about the people of their party's winning. So, it will be seen that the ordinary voters of the village will vote for ‘Sheaf of Paddy' or ‘Scale’ on that day,” he said.
Dr Taher argued strongly that the referendum must be held separately before the national election. “The referendum is not just a political exercise but a national reform mechanism for the country’s long-term benefit. Holding it separately will allow people to focus on the reforms rather than partisan contests,” he said.
He dismissed concerns over the cost of holding the referendum separately. “It’s a simple vote with minimal expense. The same ballot boxes and logistics used for the general election can be used here. The only additional cost is printing the ballot papers and covering minimal operational expenses,” he explained.
Appoint election officials through lottery:
The Jamaat leader said his party emphasised the need for appointing election officers through a lottery system to ensure neutrality.
In case of voting rights for non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs), Taher said they asked the EC to consider NID cards or another document during their registration before the next election.
In response, the EC informed them that NRBs could be registered as voters using either their national ID cards or birth certificates.
Dr Taher said his party also asked whether NID cards could be made mandatory for casting votes to prevent fraud. The EC told them that it is refreshing photograph-based voter list, which might make additional ID requirements unnecessary, if the images are clear enough, he added.
On electoral reforms, Taher said if the proportional representation (PR) system is introduced, incidents like vote rigging, ballot stuffing, or polling center capture will decline. “We asked the EC to consider both systems (PR and the traditional first-past-the-post systems),” he said.
Four other Jamaat delegation members are AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair, Matiur Rahman Akand and Jashim Uddin Sarker.