NEW DELHI: A day after miscreants set ablaze five bogies of the Benapole Express in the Gopibagh area in Dhaka, Bangladesh’s Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal on Saturday said that the Election Commission is trying to ensure that the elections would be free and fair and would find acceptance both within Bangladesh and abroad.
Security has been beefed up across the country. One hundred observers from across the world, including three from India, have been deployed.
This is the 12th national election in Bangladesh, and 700 Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) teams will be deputed across Bangladesh on election duty, as there is a possibility of unrest.
“There are close to 100 foreign observers, including three from India, who will monitor the twelfth general election, which is being held under tight security. The election commission said voting will start at 8 am and end at 5 pm on January 7. The results are expected to start flowing from early on January 8,” a source added.
Awal did not rule out the possibility of violence, as Bangladesh National Party — the opposition party — was boycotting the polls and had urged people to boycott it too. The government has made arrangements to deal with issues of unrest and vandalism.
In order to maintain law and order and a peaceful election process, besides RAB teams, specialised units including dog squads, bomb disposal units, and RAB helicopters have been kept on standby. A new device called OIVS has been installed to identify intruders.
“The Onsite Identification and Verification System (OIVS) can instantly identify any person they bring under their scanner. Operated through an internet connection, this mobile-like device is easy to carry and needs the fingerprint of a person to track his records, including his national identity number, etc,” according to a source who added that this would speed up criminal investigation.