Hearing on the Investigation of Irregularities in Three Parliamentary Elections in Chittagong

The investigation commission established by the Election Commission has conducted a hearing regarding various irregularities observed in the parliamentary elections of 2014, 2018, and 2024 in Chittagong.

The hearing took place at the Chittagong Regional Election Commission office for one day on Friday (November 7). Candidates who participated in the last three elections, along with officials who served during these elections, were in attendance.

From morning until noon, a hearing was held for all candidates who took part in the 2014 elections for the Chittagong-5 (Hathazari) constituency. The hearing for the officials who served in the 2018 elections for the Chittagong-11 constituency commenced at 2:30 PM. Initially, the returning officer was heard, followed by the second phase of the hearing involving police officers.

The hearing was presided over by members of the National Election Investigation Commission (holding the rank of Joint District and Sessions Judge), Tazrian Akram Hossain and Dr. Md. Abdul Alim. They were supported by the Investigation Commission's Law and Research Officers, Md. Faruk Hossain and Md. Soyebur Rahman, as well as the Deputy Secretary of the Election Commission Secretariat, Md. Abdul Momin Sarkar.

As per sources from the election office, during the morning hearing for candidates in the Chittagong-5 constituency in 2014, only one candidate responded to the Election Commission's summons. Consequently, the National Election Investigation Commission did not uncover any significant findings during the hearing. Conversely, retired former Chittagong Divisional Commissioner Abdul Mannan and current Barisal Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Delwar Hossain attended the hearing for the Chittagong-11 constituency in 2018. Additionally, police officers who served in 11 constituencies appeared from various regions of the country. However, media representatives were prohibited from entering the hearing.

Following the hearing, no member of the investigation commission provided comments to the media. Nevertheless, when reporters inquired of former Chittagong Divisional Commissioner Abdul Mannan upon his exit from the hearing, he remarked, "I was questioned regarding the irregularities. I responded that we made every effort to avert such irregularities. We promptly annulled the votes at even a single center. However, we were unable to eliminate them entirely. This represents our shortcoming.

There is considerable debate surrounding the 2018 national election. I hope that such elections do not occur again in the future."