Staff Correspondent

The Election Commission (EC) has proposed to regain its authority to suspend or cancel the entire election result of a parliamentary constituency in case of irregularities.

“Now we have the authority to cancel the election results of one or more polling stations in case of irregularities. What we lack is the authority to stop the entire constituency's election, which (that power) was taken away earlier. We’ve now proposed to get it back,” said Election Commissioner Abdul Fazal Md Sanaullah on Thursday.

He said this while briefing reporters about the outcomes of the Commission's six-hour meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin at Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital.

Sanaullah expressed the hope that the EC would get back the authority it previously enjoyed.

The proposal comes as part of the commission’s initiative to amend the Representation of the People Order (RPO) 1972 ahead of the next national election.

In 2023, ahead of the 12th parliamentary election, the then Awami League government amended the RPO, curtailing the EC’s authority to suspend or cancel the entire result of a constituency election, a move that drew strong criticism from opposition parties.

According to the existing RPO, the EC now can suspend the results of only those (one or more) polling stations where irregularities have been reported after the failure of law enforcement agencies to stop anomalies.

But the commission cannot suspend or cancel the entire election result of a constituency due to irregularities in one or some polling station.  

The amendment came after the Election Commission cancelled the Gaibandha-5 parliamentary by-election due to irregularities.

The commission now seeks to restore the pre-2023 authority that allowed it to call off an entire constituency’s election if needed, as part of broader electoral reforms being considered before the upcoming polls.