Bangladesh: Minorities demand representation in Election Commission

Dhaka, Feb 15, 2022, Newsonair

The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC) has demanded representation of the minority community in the Election Commission which is in the process of being formed. Briefing media in Dhaka on Monday, the General Secretary of the BHBCUC advocate Rana Dasgupta said that the council demands inclusion of a capable and acceptable representative from the religious and ethnic minority community of Bangladesh in the Election Commission set to be formed soon.
Rana Dasgupta pointed out that at least 12 percent of the voters of Bangladesh belong to religious and ethnic minorities. They never had representation in the Election Commission of Bangladesh.
The BHBCUC has placed its demand before President Abdul Hamid and the search committee tasked to form the new Election Commission.
The Bangladesh government constituted a six-member search committee headed by a Supreme Court judge Obaidul Hasan on 5 February to recommend names for the next Election Commission. The tenure of the last EC ended on February 14. The search committee invited names from political parties, organisations and individuals to consider for inclusion in the EC. It received 322 names for the EC from various stakeholders which was published on its website Monday.