The Election Commission (EC) has sent a list of 47 convicted collaborators to its National Identity Card (NID) wing, with the view to exclude their names from the voter list.
However, the exclusion can only be finalised after the Electoral Roles Act is amended to incorporate the provision. The EC has been preparing a suggested amendment to the act which would exclude the name of war criminals and collaborators from the existing voter list.
It has also asked the home ministry to examine the book “Muktijuddho 71: Convicted War Criminals According to the Collaborator Act,” for a comprehensive list of collaborators.
EC Deputy Secretary Abdul Odud Monday said the EC has sent copies of some pages of “Muktijuddho 71: Convicted War Criminals According to the Collaborator Act” written by ASM Samsul Arefin to the home ministry.
Joint secretary of EC law division, NI Khan said the EC is going to suggest an amendment to the Electoral Roles Act so that the names of war criminals and collaborators are excluded from the voter list.
EC officials said the EC has taken initiatives to exclude collaborators from the voter list ahead of the next general elections following the 15th amendment of the constitution.
On March 19, the EC sent a letter to the home ministry seeking the list of convicted collaborators punished in 1972. On May 25, the home ministry sent the list of 47 convicted collaborators to the EC.
According to the list, 31 convicted collaborators from Comilla, seven from Noakhali, four from Rajbari, four from Chittagong and one from Jhenaidah were convicted and served different periods in prison. However, the names of suspected and sentenced war criminals were not included in the list.
Those who are convicted by national and international courts or tribunals cannot participate in the parliamentary elections, according to the Representation of the People Order (RPO). The International Crimes Tribunal has so far convicted four war criminals.