Zakir Hossain / Dhaka
Bangladesh’s Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin on Tuesday declared that foreign observers who endorsed the last three national elections as credible will not be allowed to monitor the upcoming parliamentary polls.
“Should we accept those observers who termed the last three elections acceptable, fair, and credible? We will allow those with proven experience in election observation and who are considered reliable. We will not accept those who endorsed the previous three elections,” the CEC told reporters after meeting Canadian High Commissioner Ajit Singh at the Election Commission office in Dhaka.
While he expressed hope that many international observers would attend, the CEC said the Election Commission had already written to the European Union to send observers. “They had earlier expressed interest. However, they’ve been asked to inform us in advance, since they have 28 countries,” he said.
Meanwhile, the High Court of Bangladesh published the full verdict of its 17 December ruling, reinstating the caretaker government system and declaring key parts of the controversial 15th Constitutional Amendment void.