Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal said on Thursday that no election is above controversy and even the 12th parliamentary national election is not. "No election has gone beyond controversy. The election we are satisfied with has not gone beyond controversy," he said. The CEC made the remarks while addressing a thanksgiving event for holding the 12th parliamentary election in a fair and successful manner at the auditorium of Nirbachan Bhaban on Thursday. Russian Election Commission invites CEC Habibul Awal, others to observe presidential elections in the country He said that the recently held election was not very participatory as a major party not only boycotted the election but also wanted to prevent it from taking place. “The nation has finally been content as the election was held,” he said. Mentioning that both slander and bad name have to be taken, he said that it is not possible to make such a big job successful without the support of the government. “The nation has overcome the crisis through the election,” he said. Anyone can challenge the percentage of voter turnout: CEC The Election Commission does not get acceptance if the politicians do not have confidence, he said. Election Commissioner Brig Gen (retd) Md. Ahsan Habib Khan said, "I have been successful by working with faith. I can't go down from the standard I reached. We will show you how this commission works. It will be exemplary for the future.” Another Commissioner Anisur Rahman said they were firm that they would take their decision if they could not hold a free, fair and peaceful election. About the turnout of the voters, he said there would not be any confusion if the last briefing on the voting turnout was with three pieces of information at 3:30 pm. “If challenged, we can show it. This is the first time that an election investigation committee formed in every constituency has worked. The executive magistrates also did a good job,” he said. CEC estimates 40 per cent turnout in Sunday’s election, appreciates govt cooperation Highlighting the election process, commissioner Md Alamgir said they have successfully completed party registration, voter list, demarcation of constituencies, and recruitment of election officers, holding dialogue and observers’ registration. Chaired by EC Secretary Md Jahangir Alam, other election commissioners spoke on the occasion.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal on Wednesday said discipline was maintained at the voting centers during the Gaibandha-5 by-election. He made the remarks while talking to journalists after monitoring the by-election to Gaibandha- 5 through CCTV cameras at Election Commission Bhaban in the capital’s Agargaon. Blaming the cold weather for the low voter turnout, he said the EC has nothing to be satisfied or dissatisfied over the low voter turnout as it is their (voters) right to cast vote. Asked whether the CCTV cameras will be used during the 12th parliamentary elections, he said CCTV cameras have important role in holding fair election but no decision has been taken yet in this regard. He appreciated the role of district administration and  police saying that they performed their duties with professionalism. The election was monitored directly from Dhaka through a total of 1,242 CCTV cameras. Read more: Gaibandha-5 by-election on Wednesday The voting was monitored by CCTV cameras from 8 am at the EC control room on the fifth floor of the Election Commission building. Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal, Election Commissioners Ahsan Habib Khan, Md. Alamgir, Rashida Sultana and Anisur Rahman monitored the polls. On October 12 last year, the Election Commission (EC) suspended the by-election due to “rampant irregularities” on the election day and later the commission fixed January 4 for holding the polls. Following the death of Gaibandha-5 lawmaker and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Fazle Rabbi Miah on July 22, 2022, it became a constitutional obligation to hold election for the parliamentary seat by October 20, 2022. Accordingly it was scheduled for October 12. A three-member committee was formed to look into the election irregularities on October 12 last year. Read more: Gaibandha-5 by-polls: Festive mood as voting underway Following the recommendations of the committee, the Election Commission took punitive actions against 133 officials including an additional deputy commissioner, five sub-inspectors and returning officer of the election.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal on Thursday said the Election Commission will take action against 133 officials for their negligence in duty during Gaibandha-5 by-election. The CEC made the remark during a briefing at the Election Commission building in Dhaka. Gaibandha-5 by-election was suspended amid allegations of “malpractices” on October 12 this year. “A returning officer conducts the whole election. It his routine duty to visit the polling centres as many times as possible. But he neglected his duties. He visited the centres with Deputy Commissioners and Police Supers when the CEC informed him about the irregularities over telephone,” he said. He also said the returning officer was supposed to visit and check to ensure that all activities were being carried out according to law and take immediate initiative to prevent any unwanted incident. “But he absolutely failed to perform their duties. He did not find any irregularities in the electoral area. When the CEC was about to take the decision to suspend the election, the returning officer suspended the voting of a centre to demonstrate his performance,” he said. Read more: Gaibandha-5 by-election: Wait for a decision, says CEC Had he performed his duties properly, it would have been possible to prevent the irregularities in the early stage, CEC Awal said. The CEC also said that the EC Secretary has been instructed to take action against the accused returning officer. Gaibandha-5 by election will be held in due time according to the constitution, he added. Earlier, the CEC extended the deadline for holding the Gaibandha-5 polls till January 30. According to the constitution, if any constituency falls vacant then the position must be filled within 90 days through an election. Read more: 'Gaibandha by-election was an isolated case': Election Commissioner Following the death of Gaibandha-5 lawmaker and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Fazle Rabbi Miah on July 22, 2022, it became a constitutional obligation to hold election for the parliamentary seat by October 20, 2022. But the EC cancelled the election because of “widespread malpractices” on the election day on October 12.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal said on Saturday that a comprehensive decision will be taken within seven days after a full investigation involving the cancellation of voting at Gaibandha-5 parliamentary seat. He said that the initial investigation by a committee appointed by the Election Commission was partial, and they need a full investigation to reach a final decision. The CEC made the remarks in response to reporters' questions while monitoring the by-election vote in Faridpur-2 constituency on Saturday morning. Also read: No decision taken yet over suspended Gaibandha -5 polls: CEC Awal said that the EC has only observed 51 closed centres, while a committee has been constituted to analyse the remaining 94 centres' CCTV footage at Gaibandha-5. "They will report within seven days. Then a coordinated decision will be taken," he said. EC’s Additional Secretary Ashok Kumar Debnath, who headed the committee, submitted the report to EC Secretary Humayun Kabir Khandaker. Also read: EC extends deadline for Gaibandha-5 by-polls by 90 days The EC suspended the election because of “widespread malpractices” on the election day on October 12. It also extended the deadline for holding any fresh election to the Gaibandha-5 parliamentary seat by three months, or till January 20, 2023. While there was no concrete decision over if a new election will be held, pending an investigation into malpractices on the election day, the EC said that the deadline has been extended to follow the rule of 90 days in holding an election after a seat falls vacant. Following the death of Gaibandha-5 lawmaker and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Fazle Rabbi Miah on July 22, 2022, it became a constitutional obligation to hold election for the parliamentary seat by October 20, 2022.

Chief Election Commissioner ( CEC)  Kazi Habibul Awal said election environment in hundreds of local government elections should be maintained in the future as the Commission has not seen violence, vote rigging or received any complaints. "This is a good sign. If it can be maintained, it will work in the future. Now there is a voting environment. That is our purpose," he said. He was talking during a briefing on the monitoring of local government polls in different areas from the Election Commission headquarters. The CEC said that they have not seen violence, vote rigging or received any complaint while monitoring four municipalities from here. CCTV cameras were used only in four municipalities for monitoring from the headquarters. These are: Fatikcchari Municipality of Fatikcchari Upazila of Chattogram, Hazrabari Municipality of Hazrabari Upazila of Jamalpur, Parvatipur Municipality of Parvatipur Upazila of Dinajpur and Vishwanath Municipality of Vishwanath Upazila of Sylhet. Read more: No decision taken yet over suspended Gaibandha -5 polls: CEC He also said that many people stood in line and voted in an orderly manner. “It seems to me that the voters have exercised their rights with restraint and patience,” he said. He informed that the Commission will also monitor the Faridpur-2 seat polls to be held on November 5. The Election Commission conducted polls on Wednesday in local government bodies to elect representatives in upazilas, municipalities and union parishads across the country. Voting started at 8 am and continued till 4 pm. EC also conducted voting in three upazilas - Karnaphuli of Chattogram, Jagannathpur of Sunamganj and Osmaninagar of Sylhet. Besides, by-election was being held for the posts of chairman of Netrakona Sadar, Roumari and Chilmari of Kurigram and Khoksa upazila of Kushtia. The by-election to Khoksa Upazila Parishad of Kushtia started amid clashes between supporters of the rival candidates. As soon as voting started at 8 am, fight broke out at Kadirpur Government Primary School voting centre between supporters of the Awami League-backed candidate Babul Akhter and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) leader Motahar Hossain Khokon. Read more: Deal with any intimidation in next polls, CEC asks DCs, SPs The EC took votes in many Union Parishads (UP). The UPs are Baratara and Tulsi Ganga in Khototal Upazila of Joypurhat; Ziarthi and Kanchanpur of Kushtia Sadar, Chithlia and Dhubail of Mirpur; Adra and Phulmocha of Melandah in Jamalpur Upazila; Raipara, Mahmudpur and Sutarpara of Dohar Upazila of Dhaka; Perli and Panchgram of Kalia Upazila of Narail; West Jaflong, Goainghat, East Jaflong and Madhya Jaflong of Goainghat Upazila of Sylhet; Kharera of Kasba upazila of Brahmanbaria and Durlabpur of Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj. The EC  also conducted by-elections for a total of 60 member posts under 58 Union Parishads in 52 upazilas of 36 districts.    

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal on Sunday said the Election Commission wants to remain above criticism by holding a free, fair and credible election as the last two national polls were tainted by controversies. “Though there were criticisms and debates over many elections in the past, the 2014 and 2018 elections drew excessive criticism and debates in the political sphere. We want to stay above criticism and controversy by conducting free and acceptable elections without bias,” he said. The CEC came up with the remark at the EC’s talks with the governing Bangladesh Awami League at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the city’s Agargaon area. Also read: CEC calls for changes in the country’s electoral system An AL delegation, led by its general secretary Obaidul Quader, joined the talks as part of the EC’s dialogues with registered political parties, arranged to seek their opinions over the 12th parliamentary elections slated to be held next year. The CEC said it is the constitutional and statutory responsibility of the Election Commission to hold free and neutral elections. Similarly, it is the constitutional and statutory duty of the government to assist the EC,” he said. "We’ll continue our sincere efforts to make elections free and acceptable,” he said. Describing Awami League as the oldest party and one of the biggest political parties in the country, he said, “We’ve also higher expectations from the big party.” Awal said AL has been in power for three terms in a row. So, the common people call AL as a ruling party or power party. But there is no mention of government party or ruling party in the constitution. “If I am not wrong, Awami League is a political party like ten other parties,” he said. The Election Commission will perform its responsibility to hold the 12th national election in free, neutral and participatory manners and ensure the exercise of voting rights as per the laws and regulations remaining obliged to the Constitution, he said. Also read: CEC calls for all-party participation in next national election “We hope that everyone will cooperate with the Commission and wish success for the parties in maintaining their responsible behaviors over the national election,” he added. Citing that the Election Commission received views from the political parties both for and against the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) during the EC’s talks, the CEC said, “Most of the parties do not believe in EVMs…. We can't gain the confidence of many people after talking. We will make decisions independently. But there is no consensus.” Talking about the proposals received from other political parties in the dialogues, Habibul Awal said some parties favour staggering the national election for several days, instead of on a single day and some parties also asked for the deployment of army in the parliamentary polls. Four other election commissioners and EC secretary also spoke at the talks. AL leaders Amir Hossain Amu, Matia Chowdhury, Kazi Zafarullah, Muhammad Abdur Razzaque, Faruk Khan,  Hasan Mahmud, Shahabuddin Chuppu, Abdus Sobhan Golap, Barrister Biplab Barua,  Salim Mahmud, Shamsunnahar Chapa and Sayeem Khan were the other delegation members. With the talks with AL, the EC has apparently wrapped up its dialogues with the political parties. Among 39 registered political parties, 28 participated in the EC’s talks, while nine abstained and the remaining two parties sought time to sit with the Commission.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal on Sunday called for changes in electoral system to make the balloting acceptable to all. The CEC said this during a dialogue with Jatiya Party (Japa) at the EC Bhaban on Sunday. “Under the current system, no matter how much competency I demonstrate, it is very difficult to come up with an election that is absolutely acceptable to everyone," he said. He said it is also a disappointment because everyone will not sincerely help the EC to properly perform its duty. Also read: An EC under partisan govt can’t hold credible election: BNP The CEC also suggested holding workshops to find out the way out and have an acceptable vote. The 14-member Japa delegation was led by its secretary general Mujibul Haque Chunnu. Chunnu proposed staggering the upcoming national elections for seven days to make it free from rigging and violence. Also read: CEC calls for all-party participation in next national election He also proposed distribution of the seats of the Parliament based on the percentage of votes (proportional election). The party opposed  use Electronic Voting Machine (EVM). Four election commissioners and senior officials of the EC were also present at the dialogue.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has said that his comment about combating words with rifles during elections was a joke. The CEC gave this explanation in a dialogue with the Bangladesh Revolutionary Workers Party at the election building on Monday . “You must have a concerted effort. If someone stands with a sword, you should stand with a rifle or another sword. If you run, what do I do? We will help. We’ll have command over the police and the government,” the CEC had said at the meeting with a team of Nationalist Democratic Movement (NDM) yesterday. Also read: EC in the soup with the election as major parties differ, says CEC Habibul Awal "A Chief Election Commissioner does not have enough commonsense to comment like this? If that is true then I am arrested under Arms Act, which I did under Arms Act. The police will come and take me away. There is one thing - whether it is said from the heart or a joke, these must be understood," he said. CEC said that the main news in the paper about this, is to bring down a man. After that, there is no more morale to work. A delegation of 10 members led by the General Secretary of Bangladesh Revolutionary Workers Party participated in the EC dialogue. Among others, four Election Commissioners and senior EC officials were present. Also read: CEC’s statement on election-time violence suicidal: TIB

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has said that electronic voting machines are more acceptable than ballots in national and local government elections. "EVMs are better than ballots, even if there are pros and cons among the political parties on EVMs. There is no chance of one person voting for another. It is impossible for me or you to vote for anyone in EVM," he said. Kazi Habibul Awal made the remarks at an exchange of views on EVMs with various political parties on Tuesday. The EC held an exchange of views on EVMs with 13 registered political parties at the Election Building in the capital on Tuesday afternoon.  Although 13 registered political parties were invited to participate in the meeting, only eight parties took part.  Election Commissioner Brigadier General (Retd.) Ahsan Habib Khan, Md. Alamgir and Begum Rashida Sultana and EC Secretary Khandaker Humayun Kabir were also present. "As far as elections are concerned, we have not received any allegation from any center that EVMs have been misused," the CEC said at the meeting. At some polling stations, the fingerprints of the voters did not match in the EVM. However, after they went home and cleaned their hands, they were able to cast their votes if their fingerprints matched. Also Read: CEC denies Bahauddin was ordered to leave Cumilla during polls "EVMs can cause some problems. But in a ballot, one can get one hundred votes instead of one, but in EVM, that is not possible. I can't vote for you or your vote in EVM. This is absolutely impossible," he stressed. CEC Kazi Habibul Awal said the question was whether the ballot was good or bad.  "I have my own experience on the ballot, how to occupy the polling station. The ballot box is filled with two or three hundred seals in one hour, you can't even close it from the side. Even so, owning one is still beyond the reach of the average person. The CEC said there were pros and cons with EVMs. It can exist. "We are trying to overcome that. However, we have not yet made a decision on EVM. We value the views of all political parties. We also have the right to decide. However, we will take the opinion of all parties. We will not take any decision about EVM without taking everyone's opinion," he said. Kazi Habibul Awal further said, "We will analyze the views of the political parties. We have invited 39 registered political parties with interest. We are doing our part with honesty and integrity. "None of us will do anything obedient to the government. Even those who are members of our commission will not do any work in obedience to the government. None of us will act ignorant of the government. The government will not want us to be ignorant. Even if you do that, it will not be a secret. Just as we have dignity, so does the government," he added. Addressing the political parties, the CEC said, "You will have to make every effort to make good elections. Come to the polling station without sitting at home. Whether we are manipulating the EVM, whether we are casting fake votes, whether there is any rigging in the ballot — these need to be noted. Everyone has to take responsibility equally. Otherwise, the election will not be fair if we rely on four or five people (commission). "Your responsibilities are much greater," he added. "You will be at the center. You have to be aware. How many centers will I go to as CEC? Can we stand in the center with a stick? I can't. But we will try to use the police-BGB."

President Abdul Hamid has appointed former defence secretary Kazi Habibul Awal as the new Chief Election Commissioner. The Cabinet Division issued a gazette notification in this regard on Saturday. Four other election commissioners are Brigadier General Ahsan Habib Khan (retd), former district and sessional judge Begum Rashida Sultana , former senior secretary Mohammad Alamgir and former senior secretary Anisur Rahman. Kazi Habibul Awal, a law professor at Brac University, joined the Ministry of Defence as Secretary on 3 March 2014. Then he was appointed as senior secretary in the same ministry on 1 December 2014. He retired on 20 January 2015. Also read: President Hamid receives 10 names for EC proposed by search committee He was reappointed as senior secretary in the Ministry of Defence on 21 January 2015. On Thursday, President Abdul Hamid received the names of 10 individuals recommended by the search committee to be appointed in the next five-member Election Commission at Bangabhaban. Two names were proposed for each post. He said the chosen names will soon be published through gazette notification. The search committee held a series of meetings with eminent citizens and civil society representatives since its formation early this month. It also received names from most of the 39 registered political parties, including ruling Awami League. Main opposition BNP and several others did not send any names. This is the first time an election commission is being formed under a law mandated by the constitution. The law on the appointment of the CEC and other commissioners was passed by the parliament on January 27. The tenure of the immediate past EC, led by KM Nurul Huda, expired on February 14 amid allegations of inefficient handling of the 2018 parliamentary polls and the recent violence-marred UP elections. Also read: Outgoing CEC, election commissioners call on President Hamid The search committee was led byJustice Obaidul Hassan of the Appellate Division. And other members were Justice SM Quddus Zaman, Auditor General and Controller of Bangladesh Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury, Bangladesh Public Service Commission Chairman Md Sohrab Hossain, and former election commissioner Muhammad Sohul Hossain and author Anwara Syed Haque were present.