Bangladeshi polling officers vacated the ballot box for voting after the polling ended at a polling station in the ancient city of Panam Nagar. File | Photo Credit: AP
The interim government of Bangladesh has constituted a committee to investigate allegations of irregularities, corruption and administrative participation in the 2014, 2018 and 2024 general elections and make recommendations to ensure proper elections in future, a notification said.
A five -member panel under the leadership of former High Court Justice Shamim Hasanan will submit a report by 30 September that the three elections were manipulated for the victory for the then prone Awami League party by systematically depriving the citizens of their voting rights, BD News 24 said on Thursday.
The notification stated that the law, democracy and the regime of fundamental human rights were allegedly reduced during the elections, which faced widespread criticism at the domestic and international levels.
It states that the committee will analyze reports from election supervisors, domestic and international monitoring bodies, civil society organizations and media about the elections of 2014, 2018, and 2024 and will collect and review the overall integrity and acceptance of these elections.
The committee will assess the role of the then ruling party and concerned institutions to prohibit political participation and obstruct the practice of voting rights, evaluate the works of Election Commissions, their secretariats and administration, and check the roles played by the administration, and law enforcement and intelligence agencies during those elections.
Additionally, it will investigate the financial irregularities allegedly made by the respective Election Commissions and determine accountability for the irregularities seen in those elections.
This will then provide recommendations about the necessary reforms in the administrative system to ensure laws, regulations, the role of the Election Commission, and the future independent, fair and reliable elections.
The notification further said that the committee can call documents from any office and inquire the relevant individuals, and if necessary, the additional members can co-in-election to support the investigation.
Published – June 27, 2025 04:08 pm IST