Last Updated on February 7, 2026 8:43 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Saturday alleged that a political party is preparing to manipulate the upcoming national election through organised fraud, including fake voting and misuse of religious attire.
“Some recent incidents indicate a well-planned attempt to manipulate the voting process,” said BNP Central Election Steering Committee spokesperson Mahdi Amin at a press conference at the party’s Gulshan election office.
“We are receiving reports that a large number of burqas and niqabs have been prepared to misuse religious sentiments and carry out fake voting,” he said.
Mahdi, an adviser to BNP chairman Tarique Rahman, cited the recovery of six illegal voting seals in Laxmipur and the arrest of a printing press owner, who allegedly told a court that the seals were produced on the instructions of a Jamaat-e-Islami leader. “WhatsApp order details, seized materials and links with a concerned candidate point to a conspiracy to influence the election,” Mahdi said, demanding legal action against all involved.
He urged the Election Commission to ensure adequate female polling officers in women’s booths and strictly enforce voter identification rules requiring voters to uncover their faces. “The Election Commission has already issued clear instructions, similar to procedures followed for National ID and Hajj photographs,” he said.
Mahdi also alleged that National ID details and mobile banking numbers were earlier collected door to door and claimed preparations were underway to print extra ballot papers. Referring to a recent law enforcement drive, he said 152 cricket stumps were recovered from the house of a leader of the same party in Old Dhaka’s Sutrapur area. “This raises the question of whether they are preparing for violence during the election,” he said.
He also questioned the credibility of election observers, alleging links between some organisations and a political party. Citing the People’s Association for Social Advancement (PASA), he said it was allocated 10,559 of the 55,454 approved local observers despite reportedly operating from a single room in Habiganj. “These issues pose obstacles to a free, fair and credible election,” Mahdi said, urging the Election Commission and interim government to ensure a level playing field.