Candidates in the upcoming general election have begun reaching out to voters weeks before official campaigning is allowed, using mosque visits, social events and family courtesy calls to skirt electoral rules as the Election Commission struggles to rein in early violations.
With the 13th parliamentary election scheduled for 12 February, the Election Commission (EC) has instructed political parties and candidates to refrain from any electoral activity until symbols are officially allocated tomorrow. Yet across the country, informal outreach has intensified, steadily warming up the electoral atmosphere in defiance of the code of conduct.
Candidates from major parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP), are widely reported to be engaging voters through mosque prayers, milad and doa mahfils, courtesy visits, health camps and winter clothing distributions.
While avoiding overt calls for votes or large public rallies, party leaders and activists have been roaming constituencies, blurring the line between social interaction and early electioneering.
The EC has acknowledged widespread violations, but its response has largely been limited to issuing show-cause notices and imposing small fines.
According to EC sources, most of those served notices so far are candidates from BNP, Jamaat and NCP, along with a number of independent hopefuls.
Penalties have been imposed by election investigation and judicial committees set up to examine “pre-election irregularities” and conduct summary trials.
The EC says action has been taken against candidates for offences such as using unauthorised coloured posters, organising motorcade processions, gathering crowds to solicit votes, making electoral promises, posting party symbols on social media or distributing leaflets.
But beyond these visible breaches, campaigning continues almost uninterrupted under the guise of religious and social events. In some areas, candidates have even been accused of seeking votes during sermons and mahfils, despite the clear prohibition on campaigning before symbol allocation.
Prof Dilara Chowdhury, a prominent political scientist, said the Commission’s credibility had already been eroded, undermining its ability to enforce the rules.
“First of all, the EC has damaged its own image by nominating bank defaulters and citizens with dual citizenship, thereby violating the Constitution,” she said. “When a person or an institution loses its moral strength, it becomes very weak.”
She added, “Those who lack moral authority cannot effectively carry out their responsibilities. People will no longer listen to them. Now people will say, ‘You yourself have broken the law – why are you telling us to follow it?’”
On the ground, candidates are adopting increasingly strategic approaches to voter engagement. Many are visiting neighbourhood shops, homes and educational institutions, exchanging greetings and discussing development plans and future promises.
Leaflets and stickers bearing candidates’ photographs and party symbols have appeared on vehicles and public spaces. Some of these interactions have escalated into verbal attacks on rival candidates, triggering clashes in several areas.
The same pattern is evident online. Social media has emerged as an alternative campaign arena, with candidates and supporters posting photos, videos, slogans and symbols on Facebook to signal vote expectations.
While there is no formal microphone campaigning, digital platforms are being used extensively for indirect mobilisation, with little apparent scrutiny.
One such case involved Mamnul Haque, a candidate in the Dhaka-13 constituency, who was seen distributing leaflets and soliciting votes in front of the Election Commission office itself. He was later served a show-cause notice.
In Dhaka-8, NCP candidate Nasiruddin Patwary has been observed greeting voters and seeking prayers after Fajr prayers outside mosques.
At times, he has openly asked for votes in the name of a public mandate and made derogatory remarks about rival candidates – actions explicitly prohibited under the code of conduct.
BNP candidate Mirza Abbas, also contesting Dhaka-8, has similarly been active in the field, meeting voters, seeking prayers and votes, and criticising Nasiruddin Patwary in what has become a heated back-and-forth. The exchanges have spilled online, creating a political storm on social media.
On Sunday, 18 January, Nasiruddin Patwary was served a show-cause notice. On the same day, NCP convener and Dhaka-11 candidate Nahid Islam received a similar notice.
Several others have faced action for provocative statements, including Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Md Ruhul Amin in Chuadanga-2, who was served a notice on 15 January for allegedly encouraging supporters to carry bamboo sticks.
Despite these measures, critics say enforcement remains selective and inadequate. Candidates continue to campaign through health camps and winter aid distributions, activities that have drawn little visible response from authorities.
Meanwhile, independent candidate Barrister Rumeen Farhana, contesting Brahmanbaria-2, has accused the administration of harassment.
The assistant returning officer and Sarail upazila nirbahi officer, Md Abubakar Sarkar, has requested legal action against her, alleging she violated the code of conduct and created a “mob”.
After two of her supporters were fined twice for violations, Rumeen Farhana publicly confronted an executive magistrate, pointing her finger and reprimanding him in an incident that went viral on social media.
She has claimed that while other candidates are openly breaching the rules without consequence, she alone is being targeted.
To address pre-election irregularities, the EC has deployed 300 election investigation and judicial committees, composed of judicial officers, across constituencies nationwide. Following a gazette notification on 14 January, the committees began work and will remain active until the publication of election results.
They have been instructed to stay in their constituencies and perform election-related duties around the clock.
Under the Representation of the People Order (RPO) 1972, violations of the electoral code of conduct can result in imprisonment of up to six months, fines of up to Tk150,000, or both. Political parties may also be fined up to the same amount, and in serious cases candidacy can be cancelled based on committee reports.
Executive magistrates are empowered to impose immediate penalties through mobile courts, while judicial magistrates may issue show-cause notices, conduct hearings and submit reports to the EC. Final decisions on major sanctions rest with the commission.
Election Commissioner Anwarul Islam Sarkar insisted the EC was acting independently. “The Election Commission is under no pressure at all,” he said.
“Everyone wants a good election, and the Commission wants the same. A commission gets only one opportunity to conduct a national election.”
He added that complaints and suggestions from political parties were helping to strengthen the process.
“We are reviewing statements made by political parties and taking action accordingly,” he said, expressing confidence that appeal hearings indicated a competitive contest ahead.
Candidates, for their part, argue they are operating within the rules, claiming their activities amount to social courtesy rather than campaigning.
Election analysts disagree, warning that such practices amount to early campaigning by another name – and raise serious questions about the enforcement of electoral law and the prospects for a level playing field.
Courtesy: Daily Sun.
Bd-pratidin English/TR
