EC, BNP Align on Multiple Reform Proposals

EC and BNP Aligned Against Reform Commission’s Proposals on Election Commission Accountability and Oversight Mechanisms

• The Electoral Reform Commission, led by Badiul Alam Majumder, submitted over 200 reform proposals across 16 sectors, focusing significantly on strengthening the accountability of the Election Commission (EC).

• Key recommendations included:

  • Submitting EC’s legal, financial, and administrative proposals to an all-party parliamentary committee chaired by the Speaker.

  • Empowering a parliamentary committee to investigate misconduct allegations against former commissioners.

  • Establishing a separate authority for delimiting parliamentary constituencies.

  • Mandating the EC to issue a certification of electoral fairness within 48 hours post-election, prior to gazette notification.

• The EC formally objected to 28 of these proposals in a letter to the National Consensus Commission on 17 March, citing threats to its institutional independence and warning of potential political interference if oversight was handed to a legislative body.

• Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, in a statement dated 26 January, voiced strong objections to:

  • Parliamentary financial oversight.

  • External evaluation of post-tenure conduct.

  • Transferring constituency boundary delineation authority to a new body.

• The BNP echoed the EC’s stance in a meeting with the National Consensus Commission:

  • Opposed parliamentary oversight of the EC.

  • Rejected the separate 48-hour fairness certification process.

  • Objected to proposals for transferring delimitation powers outside the EC.

• BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed reiterated that:

  • Misconduct during a commissioner's term is addressable via the Supreme Judicial Council.

  • Post-tenure issues are manageable under existing laws.

  • Introducing a new certification and complaint process could delay election finalisation.

• Reform Commission’s justification:

  • Current laws lack clear accountability mechanisms for the EC.

  • Past elections saw the EC allegedly evading responsibility, attributing issues to returning officers.

  • Advocated for democratic norms where no institution is above scrutiny, citing international precedents.

• The EC and BNP’s united opposition underscores a significant challenge to implementing reform proposals that aim to redefine the checks and balances on one of the country’s key constitutional bodies.