The Election Commission has decided in principle to exclude the names of the convicted collaborators and war criminals of 1971 from the voter list.
Emerging from a meeting, Election Commissioner Md Shahnewaz made the disclosure on Wednesday.
He told journalists: “ The commission is set to exclude the names of war criminals from the voting list and a proposal seeking required amendment to the Voter List Act 2013 will be sent to the ministry concerned soon.”
Earlier on June 21, the Election Commission decided to exclude the names of the convicted collaborators of 1971 from the voter list.
The EC source said the new act is expected to be implemented before finalising the voter list ahead of the upcoming national polls.
The home ministry has already sent the list of the convicted collaborators to the commission as per the commission’s earlier demand, EC officials said.
Forty-seven convicted collaborators were in the list.
On March 19, the commission sent a letter to the home ministry seeking the list of convicted collaborators who were punished in 1972, while on May 25, the home ministry sent the list of the 47 convicted collaborators.
According to the list, 31 convicted collaborators of Comilla, seven of Noakhali, four of Rajbari, four of Chittagong and one of Jhenaidah were convicted and sentenced to different terms in jail.
Officials said the commission would exclude the war criminals from the voter list, as according to the Representation of the People Order Act they could not participate in the parliamentary elections.
However, sources said the war criminals and collaborators were enlisted in the voter list and cast their votes in the last nine parliamentary elections.