Election Commission (EC) has officially bans of mobile phones inside polling stations

The Election Commission (EC) has banned mobile phones from entering polling stations on the day of the upcoming 13th National Parliamentary Election and referendum.

This information was revealed in a letter signed by Md. Shahidul Islam, Senior Assistant Secretary of the EC's Election Management and Coordination-1 Branch, on Sunday (February 8).

This letter has already been sent to the Divisional Commissioner, Regional Election Officer, and all District Commissioners and Returning Officers.

The directive states that on the occasion of the Thirteenth National Parliament Election and Referendum to be held on February 12, 2026, the Honorable Election Commission has decided that no one other than the persons mentioned below will be allowed to enter within a 400 (four hundred) yard radius of the polling station with a mobile phone.

The letter states that the Presiding Officer in charge of the polling station; the Police In-charge in charge of the polling station; and 02 (two) Ansar members using the 'Election Protection 2026' application of the Integrated Ansar/General Ansar/VDP in charge of the polling station will be able to enter the polling station with their mobile phones.

The letter further states that a request has been made to take necessary action in accordance with the said decision.

Voting will be held from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm on February 12.

This time, the number of voters in the country is 127.695.183. Of these, 64.814.907 are male voters, 62.879.42 are female voters, and 1,234 are third gender voters.

The Election Commission (EC) has released the final list of 42,761 polling stations across the country for the upcoming elections.

Of which, 115,137 rooms have been designated for men and 129,602 for women. That is, the total number of rooms stands at 244,649. However, since the referendum and parliamentary elections are on the same day, the organization will increase the number of secret booths.