Last Updated on February 8, 2026 10:54 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
With three days remaining before Bangladesh’s 13th National Parliamentary Election and referendum on February 12, authorities have deployed nearly one million members of law enforcement agencies nationwide to maintain law and order.
The second phase of the security deployment began on Sunday and will continue until February 14, covering the pre-poll, polling day, and post-election period. According to the Election Commission (EC), a total of 970,948 security personnel are engaged in election duty.
The deployment includes 100,003 Army personnel, 5,000 Navy members, 3,730 Air Force members, 37,453 Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel, 3,585 Coast Guard members, 187,603 police personnel, 9,349 Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) members, 576,483 Ansar and VDP members, 1,922 BNCC cadets, and 45,820 chowkidar and dafadar. In addition, 1,051 executive magistrates have been deployed until February 14 to oversee law and order and ensure electoral compliance.
Security forces will guard polling centres, operate mobile and striking forces, and function under the authority of returning officers. Members of the armed forces have been deployed under the “in aid to civil power” provision to assist civil administration.
Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud said the army had already begun deployment, with more troops joining from Sunday. “They will be on the field for seven days before and after the polls,” he said, adding that all agencies would work in coordination with returning officers, while the EC’s central coordination cell would monitor the situation nationwide through real-time updates from its security application.
“All necessary measures have been taken to ensure a peaceful and uninterrupted voting atmosphere,” Masud said, adding that ballot boxes had already been dispatched to districts. “Everyone is now busy with election preparations. We are prepared, and voters too are ready for a festive election after the campaign. The commission believes the electoral environment is fully conducive, with law and order under control.”
Earlier, on January 7, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a circular confirming the deployment of police, BGB, Ansar and VDP, and the Coast Guard, along with the armed forces under the “in aid to civil power” framework. The directive stated that 16–17 security personnel would be stationed at general polling centres and 17–18 at vulnerable centres, with similar arrangements in metropolitan and designated remote areas across 25 districts. Personnel will remain on duty from two days before polling until election day.