Noman Mosharef :
The Election Commission (EC) is thinking to hold the postponed and new Union Parishad’s (UP) election within December considering the respective union’s district coronavirus situation.
EC’s have planned to hold polls of the postponed municipalities, Cumilla-7 by polls and Narayangonj City Corporation election within December.
After an EC’s commission meeting on August 23, Secretary Md. Humayun Kabir Khandaker confirmed the matter.
He said we had completed 204 UP’s election out of 4,562 Union Parishads in the country. As such, the EC has decided to hold the rest of UP polls, postponed municipalities, Cumilla-7 by polls, Narayangonj City Corporation and Zilla Parishad elections within December.
Commission will announce the schedule of these UP and others polls date in the first week of September, he added.
EC source said after lifting the lockdown EC was thinking to organize the postponed and fresh UP polls as well as others local body election.
According to EC’s Election Management Wing, EC has postponed polls at 167 UP of six districts, nine municipalities as the Covid-19 situation deteriorated in the country.
The postponed UP ar Bagerhat Sadar, Sharankhola, Morelganj, Mongla, Rampal, Kachua, Chitalmari, Mollahat and Fakirhat upazila’s 70 UP, 35 UPs of Koyra, Dakop, Batiaghata, Dighalia and Paikgachha upazilas of Khulna district; 21 UPs of Kalaroa and Tala upazilas of Satkhira district; 13 UPs of Subarnachar and Hatiyar in Noakhali district; 13 UPs of Sandwip in Chittagong district and 15 UPs of Maheshkhali, Kutubdia, Pekua and Teknaf districts of Cox’s Bazar district.
The municipalities are Langalkot, Bhanga, Chakaria, Sonagaji, Kabirhat, Maheshkhali, Debiganj, Jessore Sadar Municipality and Noapara Municipality of Abhaynagar.
EC’s Election Management Wing 2 Joint Secretary Farhad Ahmmed Khan said, EC’s first and foremost duty is to hold postponed UP and other local body’s election. Then gradually other UP and local institutions polls will be arranged.
There was no scope to hold polls in August. So EC is thinking to announce the schedule of these local body’s polls in September, he further said.
On March 7, the EC announced April 11 as the date for the first phase of polling in 361 UPs, for the sixth phase in 11 municipalities and for the by-elections in Laxmipur-2 constituency. But due to the deteriorating situation in novel Coronavirus, the election was postponed 10 days before the polls. These include finalizing the candidacy, allocating symbols.
Later, the EC on June 2 rescheduled the date on June 21 for re-voting. Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) objected to this. Later, the Cabinet Division sent a letter to the EC not to vote in high-risk areas. In response to the letter, the commission postponed the polls in districts at high risk of re-infection on June 10.
As a result, on June 21, the EC held polls in 204 UPs in the first phase, two municipalities in the sixth phase and Laxmipur-2 constituency.
