Representatives from Bagerhat on Monday urged the Election Commission (EC) to restore all four parliamentary constituencies in the district, rejecting a proposal that would reduce one seat.
The hearing, held at the EC headquarters in Agargaon, Dhaka, was part of a two-day session on objections and demands regarding parliamentary boundaries.
After the hearing, Advocate Wahiduzzaman Dipu, representative of Bagerhat-3 constituency, told the media: “Since the country’s independence, Bagerhat has had four constituencies. Suddenly, the EC has informed us that there will not be four constituencies. The people of Bagerhat will not accept the exclusion of one constituency. It is unreasonable, unlawful, and impractical. This decision of the EC goes against public interest. Therefore, we urge the EC to withdraw the draft proposal which reduces one constituency from Bagerhat. We want the four constituencies of Bagerhat—one, two, three, and four—to remain as before, and we want the people of Bagerhat to participate in the next general election in those four constituencies.”
At the same time, Barrister Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain, another representative of the same constituency, said: “The Election Commission formed by the interim government of Bangladesh has the responsibility to return power to the people. Instead of doing that, they have reduced one of the four constituencies of the people of Bagerhat. By reducing a constituency, they have deprived the people of Bagerhat of their right.”
He further said: “The Election Commission has partially violated the responsibility entrusted to them under Article 118 of the Constitution. If they rectify this, if they cure this, then we will say that they have not deviated from their constitutional responsibility. We have also said that under Article 7 and Article 27 of the Constitution, the power of the people must be returned to the people. They should work at the speed of the July Uprising. They should not push us towards movements or struggles, nor push us towards the courts. The election in February should not be disrupted in any way.”
Meanwhile, Molla Rahmat Ullah, joint chief organizer of the National Citizen Party (NCP) from Bagerhat-3 constituency, alleged: “Yesterday we could not present our statement. Today again we could not place our statement. It seems to us that the Election Commission is working only for one party.”
He further said: “The decision they (the Election Commission) have taken based on the voter count does not seem rational to us.”
It may be noted that on Monday, hearings on claims and objections for the Khulna, Barisal, and Chittagong regions were scheduled.
From 10am to 12:30pm, hearings were held for Satkhira-3,4; Jessore-3,6; and Bagerhat-1,2,3.
From 2:30pm to 5pm, hearings were scheduled for Jhalokathi-1, Barguna-1,2, Pirojpur-1,2,3; Chittagong-3,5,8,19; Khagrachhari, Rangamati, and Bandarban constituencies.
