The Election Commission is struggling to have a voting system in place by using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
This is due to the lack of a proper road map and planning, several former commissioners have said.
They made the remarks as the project to procure EVMs for 150 constituencies, out of 300, for the 12th parliamentary election was not placed before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) meeting held recently.
For its part, the EC on Monday could not clarify whether it will be using traditional ballot papers in all 300 constituencies.
On September 19, 2022, the EC approved a project worth Tk8,711 crore to procure EVMs for 150 constituencies for the 12th parliamentary election.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Election Commission Secretary Md Jahangir Alam said: "We have received a letter from the Planning Commission to suspend the processing of the EVM project considering the government's financial capacity amid a global crisis."
However, he said the EC was capable of using EVMs in around 60 to 70 constituencies, in the way they were used at the 2018 national election.
When asked, he could not confirm whether those machines were still operational.
“We did not take the decision to cancel the procurement project,” the EC secretary said.
Rafiqul Islam, a former secretary and election commissioner,said the EC can hardly use the existing EVMs in 60-70 constituencies.
“In the remaining constituencies, traditional ballot papers can be used as per the law. The EC can also use only the ballots. There is no restriction to doing that,” he added.
Choosing the constituencies might also trigger questions and deciding it through a lottery is not a legally-supported action, he said.
"It is not a question of switching from EVMs to ballot papers. It is a matter of choice and decision. The EC's decisions depend on the socio-political and economic situation,” Rafiqul said.
Another former election commissioner, Brig Gen (Retd) Dr Sakhawat Hussain, who is currently senior fellow SIPG at North South University, said: "A proper plan should be in place one year before the elections. If the commission wants to arrange elections through ballot papers, it has to have various things, including paper, ink and seal, in place."
He thinks the EC does not have much time. “If the elections are held at the beginning of next year, the commission will face a paper shortage because textbooks of educational institutions are printed at that time.”
He said suspending the EVM purchase project at this moment is not understandable “as various platforms have been putting pressure on the government to arrange a free and fair election”.
He observes that the EVMs that have remained unused since 2018 may not function properly.“The EC should hold elections on ballot paper for the remaining seats as well.”
He said: “There is no need to raise a controversy by using EVMs for only 60-70 constituencies. Although I favour using EVMs, there should be proper planning to properly arrange an acceptable election.”
He suggested boosting surveillance activities to overcome other challenges.
Referring to the EVM system in Indian elections, he said: “There are now many confusing questions about the acceptability of EVMs and Germany is also facing similar issues.”
According to EC sources, the old EVM machines are stored at the district-level offices of the commission.