Don’t arrest candidates without previous warrants: EC to police

The Election Commission yesterday instructed Dhaka Metropolitan Police not to arrest candidates -- or their supporters -- of Dhaka city corporation polls without previous warrant against them.

“I have talked to the DMP commissioner in this regard and specifically asked them not to arrest any candidate or their supporters if no arrest warrant was issued against them earlier,” EC Senior Secretary Md Alamgir said yesterday.

“If a candidate and their supporters commit any offence or court gives any direction against them, the state can take action to protect the lives of people and their properties,” Alamgir said while talking to reporters at his EC office.  

The EC secretary spoke with the DMP commissioner in line with the Election Commission direction to do so.

BNP leaders on Monday in a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda informed the CEC that police were arresting and harassing their candidates.

Till that day, a party-backed councillor candidate was arrested, while another was abducted and found in Munshiganj. The house of a party-backed female ward councillor candidate was also vandalised.

“We will give further direction to law enforcement agencies in a meeting scheduled to be held on January 22,” Alamgir added.

Journalists will be allowed to enter voting centres, except secret room at voting booths, he said, adding that election officials can only bar journalists if they find any issue against them.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Hindu Bouddha Christian Oikya Parishad and Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad in separate letters to the CEC demanded for changing the voting date of DNCC and DSCC elections -- slated for January 30 -- as Saraswati Puja will be observed the same day.

Oikya Parishad presidium members Kajal Debnath, Nim Chandra Bhowmik and Puja Udjapan Parishad president Milan Dutta and general secretary Nirmal Chhaterjee handed over the letters to the commission senior secretary Alamgir.

“Saraswati Puja is traditionally celebrated at schools, colleges and universities across the country. It is unfortunate that the two Dhaka city polls will be held on that day,” said the Oikya Parishad letter.

“Earlier, we urged the EC to reschedule Rangpur-3 by-polls, held on October 5, which was the second day of Dugra Puja but the commission did not pay heed to our demands,” stated the letter. Leaders of Oikya Parishad in the letter warned that they will not take any responsibility if any kind of untoward incident takes place on the day centring Saraswati Puja coinciding with Dhaka city polls. When asked, Alamgir said that he would forward the letter to the commission for review.