The returning officer (RO) of controversial Dhaka-10 parliamentary by-election has prepared a document manipulating the reports of 32 presiding officers on deployment of army for submission to the High Court, the presiding officers alleged.

The polling officers said the RO rejected their reports as they said they did not see any army deployment in their centres during the July 1 ballot in a violation of the High Court order and asked to come up with fresh reports mentioning army presence.

The RO earlier submitted 70 of 103 presiding officers' reports to the High Court in which they

directly skirted the question of army deployment in their centres, but many said they saw army men patrol nearby.

"I don't want to be involved in a problem, so I've submitted a fresh report saying I saw army personnel outside my polling centre," a presiding officer told The Daily Star, requesting anonymity.

Bikalpa Dhara candidate Abdul Mannan filed a contempt of court case against four top government officials accusing them of violating court order on army deployment at each polling centre.

The High Court during the hearing of the case asked RO Mia Mostak Ahmed, also commissioner of Dhaka division, to submit the reports of all presiding officers.

The RO, who earlier submitted the reports of 70 presiding officers to the High Court, is likely to submit a document on the basis of the manipulated reports in a couple of days.

One of the presiding officer is currently abroad.

The High Court will hear the case on August 22.

One of the presiding officers who was forced to change his report said he submitted his report to the RO on July 20, saying he did not see any army man at his polling centre.

But the RO rejected his report and asked him to prepare a fresh one stating that he saw army men at the centre.

"We, 13 presiding officers, went to the deputy election commissioner's office on August 3 and he asked us to submit fresh reports. As suggested by him, we wrote about army deployment in our centres," another presiding officer said.

Deputy Election Commissioner of Dhaka Division Abul Kashem denied the allegation and said he never asked any presiding officer to come up with reports on the by-election.

He, however, admitted that a few

presiding officers visited him without being asked by him.

Assistant Returning Officer Shamsul Alam also dismissed the allegation, saying 70 presiding officers submitted their reports and they were sent to the High Court.

"As the High Court asked to submit the complete report, the returning officer's office collected the remaining 32 presiding officer's report."

Election Commissioner M Munsef Ali said presiding officers, who work inside a polling centre, are not supposed to see army deployment.

"The Election Commission has already submitted its report to the High Court stating that army personnel were not deployed in the by-election in line with the court orders."

On a writ petition filed by Mannan, the High Court directed the government to deploy army in each polling centre in line with the Election Commission recommendation.

Most poll watchers said they did not see army personnel deployed at polling centres.