Election Commissioner Brigadier General (Retd) Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah on Monday said political parties are now more conscious about following the election code of conduct than in the past.
He made the remarks at a meeting with members of the Law and Order Cell and the Vigilance and Observation Team at the District Commissioner’s conference room on January 26, ahead of the 13th National Parliament election and referendum.
Sanaullah said maintaining law and order is the most important condition for a credible election. “If the law and order situation is good, voters will feel encouraged to go to polling centres,” he said.
Referring to election monitoring, he said law enforcement agencies are conducting real-time surveillance to ensure a fair voting environment. He urged authorities to prevent minor incidents from escalating into major problems.
The election commissioner also highlighted the role of the Ansar and Village Defence Party (VDP), saying local members are familiar with their areas and can help identify outsiders through their local knowledge and intelligence sources.
On postal ballots, Sanaullah said unverified ballots will not be accepted. He stressed that live verification of voters is mandatory and any ballot without proper verification will not be counted. He described the verification process as a long-standing demand that must be implemented properly.
The meeting was chaired by Deputy Commissioner SM Mehedi Hasan. Others present included BGB-4 Battalion Commanding Officer Md Mosharraf Hossain, Superintendent of Police Md Abu Tarek, Army Lakshmipur Camp in-charge Major Zia Uddin Ahmed, and Additional Deputy Commissioner Samrat Khisa.
