‘No chance of fair election’
Bangladesh polls chief urged to resign over bias claims
DHAKA: Bangladesh’s main opposition alliance has demanded the resignation of the chief election commissioner, accusing him of bias, ahead of Sunday’s elections as violence worsens, officials and news reports said.
Opposition spokesman Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Tuesday night that they demanded the resignation of K.M. Nurul Huda as they did not expect a free and fair election under him.
He urged the country’s figurehead president to appoint a neutral person instead.
Alamgir, who is the secretary-general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party led by former prime minister Khaleda Zia, told a news conference that they made the call after senior leaders from an anti-government alliance walked out of a meeting with Huda.
He said a meeting between opposition leaders and election officials failed after the opposition alliance noted instances of attacks since campaigning started on Dec 10.
“But without paying heed to our allegations, the chief election commissioner talked in a biased and discourteous way that left us frustrated and shocked,” he said.
“It is impossible to get neutral behaviour let alone expecting a free, fair and neutral election under him.”
Official and media tallies said more than 100 people, mostly from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, were injured in political violence on Tuesday.
Supporters of the ruling Awami League and the opposition parties clashed in Dhaka, Cox’s Bazar, Mymensingh, Chittagong and Sylhet districts, leading English-language newspaper Daily Star and domestic Jamuna Television reported.
Daily Star also said some 250 opposition supporters had been arrested since Monday night.
At least six people have been killed and more than 1,000 injured since Dec 10.
Both the opposition and ruling party blame each other for attacks, but media reports say most attacks were executed by the ruling party members and backed by security officials.
On Monday, authorities deployed thousands of army soldiers across the country to work as a striking force for holding the election.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is seeking to return to power for a third consecutive time amid opposition allegations that the elections could be rigged.
The country’s 11th general election is set to happen amid opposition allegations that thousands of its leaders and activists have been arrested to weaken them.
But authorities say the arrests are not politically motivated and that the opposition is trying to create chaos ahead of elections.
Earlier this month, New Yorkbased Human Rights Watch urged the international community to press Bangladesh to create conditions for a free and fair election.
The group criticised Bangladeshi security forces for “arresting and intimidating opposition figures and threatening freedom of expression ahead of the election”. — AP