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Code of Conduct by Tomorrow

Local govt candidates cannot have party link

Shakhawat Liton
The Election Commission (EC) is ready to promulgate today or tomorrow the code of conduct for candidates in city corporation and municipality elections, barring them from using their political affiliations in poll campaigns.
The law ministry already okayed the provision, in defence of which the EC said since local government institutions are non-partisan, the candidates for those offices should not be allowed to use their political affiliations in election campaigns.
The candidates will not be allowed to use the names and election symbols of the parties they arc affiliated with, neither will they be allowed to use portraits of their party leaders.
The caretaker government
already made laws for city corporation and municipality elections with a provision that a political leader holding a party post will have to resign from that post if he or she is elected to any post in a city corporation or a municipality.
Traditionally an overwhelming majority of candidates for offices in local governments come from political parties.
According to the new laws about to be promulgated, candidates who will contest in the upcoming city corporation and municipality polls, which are likely to be held in July amid a possible relaxation of the state of emergency, will have to obtain prior permissions from the law enforcement. authorities for holding campaign rallies.
They will have to seek the per
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missions from respective law enforcement authorities at least 24 hours prior to scheduled campaign events, informing the authorities about the time and venue.
In a bid to compel the candidates to follow the election campaign laws, the EC will also empower itself with the authority to cancel candidatures in cases of violations of the code of conduct and other irregularities during the polls.
The code of conduct will also restrict pasting of campaign posters and scrawling of campaign graffiti on walls.
Along with the code of conduct for candidates in city corporation and municipality elections, the EC will also promulgate election rules for the two local government bodies, as the law ministry has no objection to the proposals made by the commission, EC sources said.
The new election rules for the two local government bodies will also empower the personnel of defence forces and police, engaged in election duties, to arrest anybody without warrant on suspicion of plotting to violate the laws, the sources said.
The EC sent the proposed code of conduct and election rules to the law ministry for vetting last month, and the ministry yesterday sent those back to the commission without bringing any change to the proposals, the sources said.
Senior officials of the EC Secretariat said the commission may now promulgate the code of conduct and the election rules any time since it has the authority to do so.
On promulgating the rules, the EC will announce the election schedule for the two tiers of the local government system by June 20 for holding the polls in July to city corporations of Rajshahi, Khulna, Barisal and Sylhet, and to nine municipalities.
The EC on Wednesday at a meeting with the chief adviser asked his government to create a congenial atmosphere for holding the local government polls either by lifting or by relaxing the state of emergency in respective areas.