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Published : 30 Jul 2025, 11:49 AM
A committee formed to scrutinise complaints surrounding the past three national elections held under Sheikh Hasina's Awami League administration has been turned into a commission.
A notice signed by Cabinet Secretary Sheikh Abdur Rashid on Tuesday announced the formation of the commission and set Oct 31 as the deadline for the panel to submit its report and recommendations.
The committee had been formed on Jun 26 to review the national elections of 2014, 2018, and 2024.
Asked about the new notice, Joynal Abedin, personal secretary to the cabinet secretary, said: “The committee has been changed into a commission in order to strengthen its legal basis. The other issues have remained the same.”
Former High Court justice Shamim Hasnain is the chairman of the commission. The other members are former Grade-1 government official Shamim Al Mamun, Associate Professor of Law at Dhaka University (DU) Quazi Mahfujul Hoque Supan, Barrister Tazrian Akram Hossain of the Dhaka District and Sessions Judge's Court, and election analyst Md Abdul Alim.
The notice said, “The 2014, 2018 and 2019 national elections in Bangladesh have been widely criticised, both at home and abroad. It has been alleged that a particular party was elected by curtailing the people's voting rights through various tactics.”
“The government has formed a commission to review the allegations and determine what to do to ensure acceptable elections in the future.”
THE COMMISSION’S MANDATE
The tasks assigned to the commission are:
· To analyse the complaints raised by domestic and foreign observers, civil society organisations, monitoring institutions and the media regarding the 2014, 2018 and 2024 national parliamentary elections;
· To review the allegations of corruption, irregularities and criminal activities in the elections and collect expert opinions on their impartiality and acceptability;
· To analyse the allegations regarding the role of the then ruling party and the creation of obstacles to the participation of political parties;
· To review the role of all government institutions and organisations related to the elections;
· To analyse the role of law enforcement and intelligence agencies;
· To verify and investigate the allegations of financial irregularities raised against the then Election Commission;
· To determine the responsibilities and liabilities for election irregularities;
· To formulate recommendations for holding fair and quality elections in the future;
· To exercise the power to call for documents and interrogate the concerned persons, if necessary.
The notification adds that the commission will be empowered to carry out inspections anywhere in the country, summon documents from any government office, and summon and interrogate any person suspected of wrongdoing.
The Cabinet Division will provide secretarial support to the commission, and the Bangladesh Election Commission will provide logistical and information support.
