Staff Reporter :
The Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) in a report on Tuesday said that the anti-graft watchdog found election irregularities in 47 parliamentary constituencies out of 50 during the December 30 national election.
As per the study of TIB conducted in 50 constituencies out of total 299, “ballots were stuffed on the night before the election” in at least one or more than one centre in 33 constituencies and “booths were occupied and ballots were stuffed in 30 seats.
Shahjada M Akram, Senior Programme Manager (Research and Policy) of the independent thinktank, on Tuesday revealed the findings at a press conference its Dhanmondi office.
The election campaign of the opposition party in 36 constituencies was barred while the opposition contenders in the 44 seats were harassed by police or civil administration, according to the study.
The incidents of political clashes, electoral camp vandalism and torching those on took place in 19 constituencies, it said.
The opposition party leaders and activists in the constituencies were also implicated with different types of cases, arrested and threatened by the ruling party candidates or by their activists, the report said.
Other incidents of irregularities were lawmen and administrative officers’ a silent role, ballot stuffing, fake voting, booth capturing and stuffing ballots.
According to the study, complaints of electoral irregularities were found in 47 out of the 50 constituencies.
Significant irregularities were fake votes in 41 seats; silent role of law enforcers and admin officials in 42 seats, ballot sealing on the night before the election day in 33 constituencies while threatening or barring voters in 21, booth capturing in 30, forcing voters to vote for specific symbol in 26, filling up ballot boxes before voting began in 20, ballot paper ran out in 22 cod opposition polling agents were denied entry in 29 constituencies.
The Election Commission fixed that a candidate could spend Tk 25 lakh as election expenditure, but the TIB found that a candidate on an average spent Tk 77, 65, 085 which was three times more than the fixed amount.
And in terms of the expenditure, the ruling party candidates were in the top position in terms of the highest expenditure while the independent candidates were in the lowest position.
