Dhaka: BNP on Sunday alleged that Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nurul Huda and Election Commission (EC) secretary Helaluddin Ahmed are working actively to implement the government agenda of ‘snatching’ people’s voting rights.

‘The Election Commission is being run by a quarter who’ve sold themselves out, and they’re working to snatch people’s voting rights for fulfilling Sheikh Hasina’s desire,’ said BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, reports the UNB.

Speaking at a press conference at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office, he further said, ‘The CEC has said in Khulna that EVMs will be used in a limited way while the EC secretary in Chattogram said they will procure 84,000 EVMs initially. In fact, they both are always active to implement the government’s agenda.’

Despite the opposition by most opposition parties, civil society members, journalists, election observers and social organisations, the BNP leader said the EC is out to use the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) only to appease the government.

He also feared that the EC is planning to use the EVMs on a large scale in the upcoming next general election by amending the Representation of People Order (RPO) as the government is trying to use its all weapons to hang onto power.

The BNP urged the EC to retreat from its plan to sue the EVMs in the polls, saying, ‘Using EVMs unilaterally by the Election Commission ignoring public opinions is tantamount to snatch people’s voting rights.’

On this day in 2006, Rizvi said some people were killed in the capital and other parts of the country in political violence unleashed by Awami League leaders and activists.

He alleged that Awami League men beat six people to death with oars and sticks and hurling brickbats in the capital’s Paltan area and danced on the dead bodies ‘at the behest of Sheikh Hasina. People still didn’t forget that awful killings.’

The BNP leader said many leaders and activists of BNP and other political parties have been subjected to killing, enforced disappearance and extrajudicial killing over the last 12 years since October 28, 2006 due to terrorism unleashed by Awami League. ‘These are serious crimes against humanity, and Awami League must face trial for the offences,’ he added.