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Talks With EC

Pro-Saifur BNP suggests arresting power for officers only on poll day

Staff Correspondent
Saifur Rahman faction of BNP yesterday asked the Election Commission (EC) to curtail the wholesale authority of law enforcement agencies to arrest anybody without a warrant on the polling day, and suggested empowering only the officers engaged in parliamentary election duties with the authority.
Saifur loyalists also demanded announcement of the schedule for the stalled ninth parliamentary election soon, withdrawal of the state of emergency, and release of detained BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.
"Only the officers (of law enforcement agencies] should have the power, to prevent it from being misused," said detained BNP Chairperson's Adviser Mofazzal Karim, who placed a set of electoral reform proposals to the EC on behalf of the only faction of the party allowed to sit in an electoral reform dialogue with the EC yester day amid a massive security unprecedented in any previous such dialogue with any other political party.
The existing electoral laws
empower a member of law enforcement agencies including defence forces personnel engaged in elec tion duties on the polling day with the authority to arrest anyone without a warrant, on grounds of violation or suspicion of conspiring to violate electoral laws, and other illegal activities.
The law enforcement agencies were provided with the power before the parliamentary election in 2001, a move the erstwhile united BNP which ended up winning the election, did not oppose back then.
Now, Saifur-led faction of the party, the leader of which later became the country's finance minister, and which claims to be the new mainstream of BNR wants to change all that.
'Ihe 15-member delegation of the faction that sat with the EC, without their rival party colleagues, to discuss electoral reform proposals, however suggested increasing the law enforcing power and engagement of the army at the grassroots level during the next parliamentary election.
"The patriotic army is the guarantor and custodian of the country's democracy. We are proposing to empower the army with magistracy power and to increase its engagement at grassroots level to make the next parliamentary election free and fair," Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, who led the so-called 'reformist' delegation of BNP told the EC.
But talking to this correspondent after the dialogue, Mahbubur, also a former chief of army staff, however said he did not mean "magisterial power' with the word "magistracy". "Actually, I referred to the existing provision in the electoral laws that provides the defence forces with the power to arrest," Mahbubur later said.
He said the law and order situation will be under control through active involvement of the army. Maintaining law and order will become a challenge during the election. "'Plans for taking help from law enforcement agencies at grassroots level should be readied now," Mahbubur added.
Awami League, which opposed the provisions for over two and half a years pnor to 1/11, however on November 4 last year at an electoral reform talk with the EC agreed with the provisions empowering the defence forces including the army with the power to arrest anyone without a warrant during the pollingday.
Like the police and other regular law enforcement agencies, the defence forces are also currently authorised to enforce election laws and rules and to compel candidates and their supporters to abide by the electoral code of conduct during electoral campaigns.
The BNP faction also urged the government through the EC to enact laws banning hartals, street agitations, parliament boycotts, etc.
The delegation however opposed the EC's proposal for introducing a 'no vote' system under which a voter will have an option to say 'no' to all candidates in a constituency, and also opposed another EC proposal for posting all documents submitted by candidates on its website.
The BNP faction also strongly suggested imposing a ban on printing and pasting posters for election campaigns arguing that if posters are banned then the election expenditure will be reduced. They suggested that the EC only allows distribution of handbills during election campaigns.
The delegation however did not submit any written version of the proposals to the EC saying it would send a copy to the EC Secretariat today. The leaders of Saifur loyalists in BNP however said they support 80 percent of the reform proposals drafted by the EC including its plan to introduce transparent ballot boxes.
During the talk, both sides expressed their satisfaction over the discussion on electoral reform proposals.
With yesterday's talk with Saifur-led faction of BNP, the EC yesterday supposedly wrapped up its electoral reform dialogues with political parties, while Khandaker Delwar Hossain-led faction of BNP loyal to detained party chief Khaleda Zia still remains out of the parley.
The commission will now send finalised electoral reform proposals to the caretaker government for making them into a law.
"We've been waiting for you since last November and now we are satisfied," Chief Election Commissioner (CEO ATM Shamsul Huda told the BNP delegation of Saifur loyalists after the talk.
Emerging from the meeting, Mahbubur Rahman said they are also satisfied with the talk with EC, held in the conference room of the commission's secretariat.
In response to the BNP faction’s demand for announcing a schedule for the election, the CEC said the field level work of voter registration will be completed by the end of June
or by the first week of July. "Then we will be able to have an assessment about it [specific time for polls) . We will have to specify a time carefully as we don't want to deviate from the announced date," theCEC said.
Accompanied by the two other election commissioners, Muhammed Sohul Hussain and Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hussain, the CEC however assured Saifur loyalists of announcing a specific time for the poll well ahead of the deadline for holding it.
Hie CEC said the commission hopes that it will be able to hold a free and fair parliamentary election with participation of all political parties "We hope, a united BNP will contest in the next parliamentary election," said CEC Huda, who recently failed to reunite the two factions of the party in a bid to hold yesterday's talk with a united BNP.
About BNP's reunification process, Mahbubur Rahman however told reporters that the party will be united to contest in the parliamentary election.
He said leaders of his faction wanted Khandaker Delwar Hossain, BNP chairperson appointed secretary general, to lead yesterday's delegation to the talk.
About the demand for Khaleda Zia's release, Mahbubur said Khaleda would have led the delegation had she been released. "The dialogue would have been more fruitful had our chairperson joined it,' he added.
Acting Secretary’ General Maj (retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed of Saifur loyalists, nominated by a much disputed so-called meeting of the party standing committee, also a member of yesterday's BNP faction delegation, said they want a neutral civil administration during and before the election.
"A fair civil administration is required to hold a free and fair election. But all administrations during tenures of successive caretaker governments worked for a particular political party," Hafiz said without naming the favoured party.
"Even, the current administration is under the influence of a particular party. There are people of Jonotar Moncho holding the top most positions in the administration," Hafiz alleged.