Restoring the country to the democratic path through a free, fair, and acceptable election was one of the primary responsibilities of the interim government. The upcoming election is extremely important for the country and the nation. There is no alternative to holding this election. If the election is not held, chaos will emerge in the country and independence and sovereignty will come under threat.
The government must take all necessary steps to create a conducive environment for the election. Political parties must extend full cooperation to the government and the Election Commission. To ensure a competitive election in a fair environment, the government must take a firm role.
The upcoming national parliamentary election must be free, fair, and internationally acceptable. To ensure that the credibility of the election is not questioned in any way, all concerned parties—including political parties and the government—must act responsibly.
According to the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Bangladesh is an independent and sovereign state. The fundamental principle of state governance is democracy. Democracy is one of the key pillars of good governance, development, progress, and stability. Through democracy, the people of society—that is, the citizens of the state—can establish their rights.
The electoral process is a universally recognized practice and an essential component of the democratic system. Through voting in elections, the people elect representatives to govern the state. In this way, public opinion is reflected and governments change.
In recent years, the Election Commission’s failure to conduct free, fair, acceptable, and participatory elections in a neutral manner has led to the current political crisis in Bangladesh. As a result, holding a free, fair, neutral, and participatory election that is acceptable to all has now become essential.
To resolve the current political crisis in Bangladesh and to ensure a free, fair, acceptable, and neutral election—while fulfilling the people’s rightful expectations and safeguarding Bangladesh’s independence and sovereignty—the following measures are necessary:
(a) deployment of the defense forces during the election period with magisterial powers;
(b) before voting begins, after supplying empty ballot boxes to various booths, any remaining empty ballot boxes must be kept in a secure place and ensured to be visible to candidates, election agents, or polling agents;
(c) during voting, when a ballot box becomes full, the filled box or boxes should be kept in the respective booth so that they remain visible to the concerned assistant presiding officer and election or polling agents;
(d) after voting ends, only the ballot boxes used for voting should be opened for counting; and
(e) ensuring that no one leaves the polling center without the presiding officer handing over the signed result sheet to the polling agent.
We now expect the Election Commission to present the nation with a free, fair, neutral, and credible election.
In the interest of a fair and neutral election, party leadership must play an effective role in ensuring compliance with the code of conduct, restraining party leaders and activists, and refraining from violence and the politics of influence. Just as administrative neutrality in the electoral field is essential, responsible behavior by political parties is equally important. The core strength of democracy lies in a credible election. The acceptability of an election can only be established by ensuring the people’s right to vote. A free, fair, and neutral election is possible only through coordinated and sincere efforts by the district administration, police, and political parties.
The national parliamentary election will be held on 12 February. This election has generated widespread hope among the people. The nation expects that, through this election, once a parliament and government are formed, we will achieve a stable democratic society.
The challenges to making the upcoming election free and fair include internal conflicts within political parties and factional infighting within major parties; unrecovered looted weapons; extremist and armed groups in the hill tracts; minority issues and religious propaganda; top criminals released on bail; constituency-based insecurity; obstacles to creating a level playing field in election campaigning; and the spread of rumors and disinformation through the use of artificial intelligence.
Author: Former Member of Parliament
