Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud on Monday hoped that the Election Commission would be able to hold fair polls, citing full cooperation from political parties ahead of the upcoming national election scheduled for February 12.

“We think they (political parties) are fully cooperating with us in all aspects and we firmly believe that we can hold a good election,” he said while talking to reporters at his office in the city’s Nirbachan Bhaban.

Replying to a question on whether the commission has faced any non-cooperation or pressure from any political party, the election commissioner said the EC has not faced any pressure from any quarter.

“We have not received any pressure at all. We are working with full independence to perform the constitutional responsibilities bestowed upon us. We are taking all necessary steps to hold a fair election,” he said.

Responding to another question, Rahmanel Masud said the electoral environment has remained quite good so far. “We are very optimistic. Considering the environment we have observed so far, I think the situation is quite good.”

The election commissioner urged the voters to apply their voting rights freely in the upcoming elections. “I would like to request voters to come to polling stations freely, vote for the candidates of their choice and fulfil their civic responsibility,” he said.

Rahmanel Masud said even if an ineligible candidate manages to contest and get elected for any reason, the Election Commission will still have the authority to take action at a later stage. “Even if someone passes through the process despite being unqualified and wins the election, we still have the scope to take action against them afterwards,” he said.

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He further said candidates often provide incorrect information in their affidavits or statements of assets, and to address this issue, a new legal provision—Article 91F—was incorporated in the Representation of the People Order in 2025.

According to the new article, if the Election Commission finds even after the election that a candidate provided false information in the candidate's affidavit or in the return of income and expenditure, the EC has the authority to cancel his candidature.