The Election Commission (EC) has overhauled its polling center policy, removing district administrators and police chiefs from the decision-making process and placing full authority in the hands of its own officials.
The decision came on Monday with the issuance of the new “Polling Center Establishment and Management Policy 2025,” marking a significant shift in how polling stations will be determined and managed ahead of future elections.
Under the previous 2023 guidelines, the EC—then led by CEC Kazi Habibul Awal—had formed committees comprising deputy commissioners (DCs) and superintendents of police (SPs) to decide on polling center locations. That approach faced criticism and even drew discontent among EC officials over perceived dilution of the commission’s independence.
The new commission, headed by Chief Election Commissioner A.M.M. Nasir Uddin, decided to revoke that arrangement during its fifth commission meeting on May 21.
Speaking afterward, Election Commissioner Abul Fazl Md Sanaullah told reporters, “The committee involving DCs and SPs has been dissolved. We have also dropped provisions related to EVM-specific rooms.”
According to the updated rules, the structure for polling centers remains largely unchanged: generally one center per 3,000 voters, with one booth for every 500 male voters and one for every 400 female voters.
During the 12th parliamentary election in 2024, Bangladesh had over 42,000 polling centers. With the voter count now approaching 130 million, officials anticipate that the number of polling centers will likely increase.
By centralizing control under EC officials, the commission says it aims to ensure greater transparency, neutrality, and administrative efficiency in the country’s electoral process.
