Election rehearsal in Dhaka restarted after EC flags 'chaotic' conditions

Election Commissioner Sanaullah orders the drill to be restarted after spotting signs of mismanagement during the process

Election Commissioner Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah has ordered the restart of a mock voting exercise, forming part of preparations for the upcoming national election and referendum, after identified signs of mismanagement during the drill.

The exercise began at 8am on Saturday at Dhaka's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Government Girls’ High School, where four booths are operating until midday. Large numbers of curious residents and voters gathered outside, while journalists actively monitored proceedings.

Commissioner Sanaullah arrived at the centre about an hour after polling began. On seeing what he described as a disorderly environment, he expressed frustration with on-duty officials and took charge of supervising the process himself.

He directed staff to restart the exercise, selecting 20 male and 20 female voters to begin a fresh round of mock polling.

“We need to observe the full journey, from standing in line to casting the ballot,” he told officials. “Our decisions on whether to increase polling booths, secret rooms, or even the number of centres will depend on this timing. This isn’t a performance or a drama. It’s extremely important work, and if chaos like this continues, the exercise becomes pointless.”

He also instructed that non-voters be cleared from the centre to prevent overcrowding.

Assistant presiding officers said that during the first hour, the four booths processed 23, 37, 27 and 21 voters respectively.

Several participants said it took them roughly a minute to complete both the parliamentary and referendum ballots.

However, not all voters found the process straightforward.

Shafiqul Islam said he cast his parliamentary vote easily but was unsure about the referendum ballot.

“There needs to be more awareness about the referendum. I didn’t get the chance to read the pink ballot properly. The writing was in very small print and I didn’t understand it well. I just stamped one of the options. There has to be more publicity,” he said.

Presiding officers said voters were supported through each step, from checking serial numbers to entering the polling booth. Verification, ballot issuance, stamping and applying ink together took around one minute per person.

Since taking office in November last year, the AMM Nasir Uddin-led commission has not yet overseen an election.

Officials say Saturday’s drill is intended to finalise time management and other operational decisions before polling day.

Election Commission Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the exercise would help determine how long voters actually take and what management features need to be incorporated.

“Even though voting lasts only half a day, we must closely review the time required and the logistical elements involved,” he said.