Election Commission eyes November start for union parishad polls, plans drones and body cameras

Bangladesh’s Election Commission is moving to begin union parishad elections in November, with plans to monitor every polling center using closed-circuit cameras, drones and body-worn cameras.

Election Commissioner Anwarul Islam Sarkar said the commission’s action plan was advancing rapidly and that officials expected to provide specific details within the month. The union parishad polls are intended to be the first local government elections in the commission’s planned sequence.

The commission has finalized a code of conduct containing several new provisions, many of them first used in the national elections. Officials expect to publish the gazette within a couple of days.

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Within this month, there will be significant progress and we will be able to provide specific details. Work on the action plan is moving ahead at a rapid pace. We hope that we can start the local government elections with union parishad polls.

Sarkar said November and December would be difficult months because schools hold annual examinations, scholarship tests and pre-tests. Polling centers will be located in educational institutions, where teachers will serve as presiding officers, assistant presiding officers and polling officers. The commission is working to prevent clashes between election duties and examinations and said it would take all necessary steps for free, fair and controversy-free voting.

On the Thakurgaon-1 by-election, Sarkar said the legal deadline is 90 days. An IT-supported postal ballot system will be available to voters inside and outside Bangladesh. He said the commission hopes to announce the election schedule within a few days.

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The commission will conduct polls within the legal time-bound. We hope to declare the schedule within a few days.