Police Role Still Weak, Says BNP During Meeting with CEC

Nazrul Islam Khan, a member of the Standing Committee of the BNP, has remarked that the police’s role in maintaining law and order remains relatively weak in the country.

He made the comments following a meeting with the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in Agargaon, Dhaka, on Sunday, and briefed journalists afterwards.

“From our discussion, it is clear that the Election Commission is preparing for the upcoming polls appropriately. However, there are some concerns regarding law and order. Currently, the role of the police in the country is relatively weak,” Nazrul Islam Khan said.

He added that efforts are underway to address this weakness, and since several months remain before the election, there is opportunity for improvement.

Security Measures and Proposals

During the meeting, the BNP delegation highlighted the importance of enhanced security measures for the elections:

The BNP indicated that these steps would ensure smoother law enforcement and mitigate potential security lapses during the election period.

Expatriate Voting Rights

Another key topic discussed was voting rights for expatriate Bangladeshis:

• The CEC confirmed that expatriates holding a National Identity Card (NID) would be eligible to vote.
• The BNP requested that ordinary passport holders also be allowed to vote.
• To prevent misuse, the BNP suggested verification of voters using parental information and identity checks to detect fraudulent passport holders.

Nazrul Islam Khan said that the Election Commission assured them it would work on this issue.

Electoral Areas and Guidelines

The meeting also covered constituency delimitation, code of conduct, and other election-related matters:

• The Election Commission stated that constituency boundaries were determined with consideration of geographical integrity, district and sub-district borders, and the voter list.

BNP Delegation

The BNP team attending the discussion included:

The meeting was held from 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM, providing a platform for BNP representatives to communicate their concerns and proposals regarding law enforcement, voter eligibility, and electoral preparedness.