Last Updated on January 18, 2026 11:17 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) student wing, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), on Sunday staged a sit-in and surrounded Bangladesh’s Election Commission (EC) building in Dhaka, accusing the commission of political bias and controversial decisions ahead of the February 12 national elections.
Hundreds of JCD activists gathered outside Nirbachan Bhaban in Agargaon from 10am, chanting slogans and protesting what they described as “biased and questionable” decisions on postal ballots and alleged political interference in the Shahjalal University of Science and Technology Students’ Union (SUCSU) election.
“We’ve seen a particular political group exert influence over ballot papers. These activities were carried out with the direct incitement and support of those sitting here,” JCD president Rakibul Islam Rakib told protesters. JCD leaders alleged that the EC was taking “short-sighted” decisions under pressure from a specific political group, raising doubts about its independence and professionalism. They also criticised what they called an “unprecedented and controversial” EC notification related to the SUCSU election, warning it threatened democratic practices on campus.
Heavy security was deployed around the EC premises, with police, Navy, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Ansar personnel stationed in the area, along with riot control vehicles and water cannons.
The protest followed widespread criticism after a video went viral showing around 160 postal ballots delivered to a single address in Bahrain. JCD claimed the ballots were left in a single box and distributed indiscriminately. Responding to the controversy on January 14, EC Secretariat senior secretary Akhtar Ahmed said postal ballots are sent through the Universal Postal Union and that postal systems vary by country. “In Bahrain, ballots were kept in one place due to the local postal system,” he said.