As Bangladesh braces for its February 12 parliamentary polls, a storm has brewed over postal ballots for the diaspora. BNP’s allegations of systemic fraud have been firmly quashed by the Election Commission, which cited exhaustive checks yielding zero proof of malpractice.
Retired Brigadier General Abul Fazal MD Sanaullah, speaking Thursday, delved into the viral videos fueling the fire. ‘Three clips reached us; we investigated each intensely,’ he said. ‘They show standard procedures—no tampering evident.’
The commission moved fast, engaging embassies to ground-truth the claims after parties sounded the alert. ‘Transparency in postal balloting is non-negotiable,’ Sanaullah declared, underscoring strict enforcement.
The row traces back to BNP’s Tuesday alert on distribution videos, building on their call for ballots to display candidate names with symbols—a proposal formally tabled.
Parallel drama unfolded in opposition ranks, where IAB dramatically severed ties with the Jamaat-e-Islami-headed coalition. Citing aversion to obligation-based politics, IAB aims to field candidates in 268 seats alone, snubbing a 253-seat allocation revealed at a contentious press meet it skipped.
With party infighting and ballot battles dominating headlines, Bangladesh’s elections face heightened scrutiny. The coming days will reveal if these tremors undermine voter trust or galvanize reforms.