The Election Commission will make a decision after obtaining the certified copy of the High Court judgment that ordered the restoration of four constituencies in Bagerhat district and declared illegal the EC gazette reducing the number of seats to three in the south-western district.
“Our position is that once we receive the certified copy, the Commission will decide whether to appeal or accept it. We haven’t got the certified copy yet,” said EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed while briefing reporters at Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital on Tuesday.
He said the Commission would examine the observations made by the court before taking any decision. “It’ll need to understand what observations are (in the judgment). The Commission will take a decision only after reviewing those observations,” he added.
Akhtar Ahmed said around 30 cases have been filed so far challenging the new delimitation of constituencies.
In reply to a question if the cases could leave an impact on the announcement of the election schedule in the first week of December next, he said it may impact it.
Referring to the new electoral code of conduct published in a gazette on Tuesday night, he said the new code prohibits the use of posters, plastic-coated leaflets, banners and festoons during electioneering.
As per the new code, a candidate will be allowed to use only three loudspeakers simultaneously in an area during the campaign, he said, noting that the provision also existed in the previous code of conduct.
“Not more than three amplifiers can be used in a meeting or rally. If a candidate holds three rallies, they can use a total of nine amplifiers — three for each,” he explained.
He said candidates will be allowed to use electronic digital displays in their campaign activities.
About the proposed referendum on the July National Charter 2025, the EC senior secretary said the Commission has not yet received any instruction from the government. “We, the Commission or its Secretariat, have not received any directive or communication from the government regarding the referendum,” he said.
He said the commission’s position is now what was in the past regarding the referendum.
About the upcoming dialogue with political parties, Akhtar Ahmed said the Commission waited for the code of conduct to begin the talks. “Now that we have received the code, we intend to start the dialogue from the day after tomorrow (November 13). We’ve begun preparations and will soon finalise the list of invitees,” he said.
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When asked if the dialogue will start on November 13 — the day Awami League has announced a lockdown — he said, “Inshallah, we’ll hold our dialogue on November 13 as planned.”
Asked about the agenda of the dialogue, he said discussions will cover the Representation of the People Order (RPO), the updated code of conduct and other measures to ensure a fair election.
When asked who would be invited, Akhtar Ahmed said the Commission will hold talks with registered political parties and further details about the invitees will be announced in phases.