Election Commissioner (EC) Md Alamgir on Monday said that the EC has no authority to do anything going beyond the constitution.
He came up with the remark while talking to reporters at his office at Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital's Agargaon area Monday.
“When we took oath, we said that we will abide by the constitution. The work of the Election Commission is clearly stated in the constitution. The Election Commission will not go beyond the constitution.”
While responding to reporters, he said: “All parties never participate in elections ... .Didn't take part in it in the past either. There are 44 political parties. Not everyone will participate in the polls… Because there are many capacity issues to participate in elections.”
He said: “We have taken an oath to hold elections within ninety days before the end of the term of parliament. Our job is to list the voters, register the party and conduct the elections when the election time comes.”
The commissioner said that the decision about the election schedule will be made in November. It cannot be said before.
“Our concern will be the compliance of the code of conduct. There are differences in the code of conduct for local and national elections. They will get what they need for security. However, they cannot use any government thing for election purposes.”
In response to another question, he said that the responsibility of ensuring a level playing field is not only the responsibility of the EC, but also the responsibility of the government, voters and candidates. The responsibility of the EC is as much as the law says.