‘EC for deploying troops during next general polls’

The Election Commission is favourable towards deploying troops during the next general election, a commissioner said on Monday, a day after BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia demanded army deployment with magisterial power during the polls while addressing a rally. Election Commissioner Mahbub Talukdar also said the commission was not considering using electronic voting machines (EVMs) either. However, he said the decision of deploying troops has not been finalised yet. “We commissioners, along with the chief election commissioner, sat down to discuss the matter and apparently everyone there was favourable to the idea [deploying troops]. “It has not been fianlised yet, but I will not definitively say that troops won’t be deployed.” The commissioner further said the Election Commission did not possess sufficient amount of EVMs to hold a large-scale election like the 11th parliamentary election. “So EVMs won’t be used in the upcoming national polls,” he added.