Whether local elections will be held before national elections or vice versa is a decision that will be made by the government. The Election Commission’s responsibility is only to organize the elections.
This statement was made by Election Commissioner Abul Fazal Md. Sanaullah on Wednesday (May 21) after the fifth commission meeting, while leaders and activists of the National Citizens Party (NCP) were protesting outside the Election Commission building, demanding that local elections be held first and calling for the resignation of the EC members.
Regarding the NCP’s movement, the commissioner said, “We do not want to comment on political activities.”
When asked about the NCP’s demand for local elections to be held first, the commissioner said that the Election Commission does not have control over the sequence of elections. It is the government’s decision which election will take place first or later. The Election Commission’s duty is limited to conducting the elections.
In response to questions about the neutrality of the commission, the commissioner said, “We do not want to comment on any political statements. The commission is performing its duties with full neutrality and will continue to do so.”
Addressing the issue of not appealing against the court ruling that declared Ishraq Hossain as mayor, the commissioner explained, “We have acted according to the law—Article 50 of the Representation of the People Order, Section 54 of the Local Government (City Corporation) Act, Rule 54 of the Municipal Election Rules, Rule 56 of the Upazila Election Rules, and Rule 54 of the Union Parishad Election Rules. These specify who can be a party in election petitions. There is no law that allows the Election Commission to be a party. However, in our country, when someone files a petition, the Election Commission is often made a party. But since there is no legal provision, we have tried to check all files since independence to see if the Election Commission has ever voluntarily become a party or appealed a decision. We found no such precedent. Therefore, the law does not permit us to become a party or to appeal.”
