Coercion or show of force by any candidate in the Comilla City Corporation (COCC) polls will be ineffective, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has said.
Electronic voting machines (EVMs) would be used for voting and every polling centre would have CCTV cameras, making violent means futile, Awal said at a meeting with the COCC mayoral and councillor candidates on Sunday.
“Elections are not war, so refrain from using warfare tactics. The Election Commission will take strict action against any candidate caught violating the election rules, regardless of the source of the evidence,” he added.
He said if deemed necessary the commission might also postpone or cancel the polls or its results.
The police, Border Guard Bangladesh troops and magistrates deployed in the city had been asked to take action if any kind of violence was reported, Awal mentioned.
On April 25, the Election Commission announced the polls schedule for the COCC as well as six municipalities and 135 union parishads – all to be held using EVMs.
An estimated 105 polling stations can be set up in the city which may comprise 640 booths.
A total of 189 candidates collected nomination papers for the upcoming polls. Five candidates will be vying for the office of mayor, 147 for councillor posts and 37 for general councillor posts.
Our Comilla correspondent Masud Alam contributed to this report
