Bangladesh
Election Commission Law Gazette on Election Commission formation law published
Own Correspondent, Dhaka, January 31: A gazette on 'The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners Appointment Act-2022' was published on Sunday (dated January 29th).
As the gazette has been published, the President can now form a search committee at any time under the law.
Earlier, the President agreed to the act which was passed as a bill in Parliament. The bill was passed in the 16th session of the 11th National Assembly on January 27. After being tabled in Parliament, the bill was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs for further scrutiny. After the committee recommended to pass the bill with two amendments, the bill was passed with the two recommended amendments. Besides, in the process of passing the bill, 22 amendments were accepted from the amendment proposals brought by the members of the oppositions.
In the passed bill, provision has been made in the search committee that one of the two prominent citizens nominated by the President will be a woman. The work of the search committee has been asked to be completed within 15 working days. In other words, the search committee will propose the names of the Election Commissioners to the President within 15 working days.
The bill states that the president will form a six-member search committee that to be chaired by a judge of the appellate division nominated by the Chief Justice.
Members will be- a judge of the High Court Division nominated by the Chief Justice, Auditor General and Controller, Chairman of the Public Service Commission and two prominent citizens nominated by the President.
Now a provision has been added to keep one woman among the two prominent citizens nominated by the President. The committee will propose 10 names considering their qualifications as per the law. The president will form a new Election Commission with five people from the list of 10.
The term of the current EC headed by K.M. Nurul Huda is ending on February 14. According to the rules, the president has to form a new commission before the end of the current EC. The next 12th Parliamentary elections will be held under that commission.
