Friday, 29 Mar, 2024

National

7-year jail for vote rigging: EC

14 |
Update: 2018-07-23 01:27:18
7-year jail for vote rigging: EC

DHAKA: Election Commission (EC) has issued an instruction ahead of the polls to three city corporations saying if anyone found involved in electoral fraud must face 7-year in jail.

The warning notice signed by EC Joint Secretary Farhad Ahammad Khan has been forwarded to the returning officers asking them to make the candidates and their supporters aware of the consequence.

The instruction was made as per the Sub-rule 1 of City Corporation Election Rules-77.

As per the instruction, a person has to serve minimum six months to maximum one year in jail for as many as 11 reasons that define electoral fraud.

The reasons include intentionally distorting or spoiling the seal upon ballot paper, damaging ballot paper, forging ballot paper or seal, taking away ballot papers, obstructing the normalcy of voting or vote counting or preparing the documents, driving the contestant candidate, his/her agent or polling agent out from the polling stations and forcing the officers to continue voting process in absence of the opponents, grabbing the ballot papers, ballot boxes, voting materials & documents and using those with evil intention etc.        

EC Additional Secretary Md Mokhlesur Rahman told Banglanews that if any candidate or any of his/her supporters violates the instruction, s/he must face minimum six months to seven years of jail.

None will be spared in this regard. The instruction is also applicable for the on-duty law enforcers at the polling areas too, added the EC official. 

EC has the right to even scrap the candidacy for electoral irregularities, he said further.

However, the polls to Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barisal city corporations are scheduled to hold on July 30.

BDST: 1126 HRS, JUL 23, 2018
SI/SMS

All rights reserved. Sale, redistribution or reproduction of information/photos/illustrations/video/audio contents on this website in any form without prior permission from banglanews24.com are strictly prohibited and liable to legal action.