Staff Correspondent

Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda yesterday came down on Election Commissioner Mahbub Talukdar after the latter said level playing field was not being ensured for all in polls.

At a programme in the Nirbachan Bhaban, Mahbub said voter turnout dropped alarmingly whenever Electronic Voting Machines were used.

He also said local government elections have turned into “a model of irregularities” due to polls violence, grabbing of polling centres, and vandalism of EVMs.

Immediately after the election commissioner’s speech ended, the CEC went straight on to the stage and started criticising Mahbub. All the other commissioners and senior EC officials were present at the event, organised to mark the National Voters’ Day.

“Mahbub Talukdar is doing whatever he could to disgrace and undermine the Election Commission …. He does not work in the interest of the EC. He works to protect his own interests.”

In his speech, Mahbub had said the staggered municipal polls were at its last stage. Besides, the union parishad elections will take place in phases from next month.

“Observing the trajectory of the [recent] local government elections, I believe that the level playing field required for a multi-party democracy is not being ensured in polls,” he said.

The most surprising thing happened in Raozan municipality of Chattogram where the mayor and councillors were elected unopposed. So, all law enforcers and election officials were withdrawn. The same was noticed in the upazila elections in Raozan, he said.