Bangladesh
Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal appointed new Chief Election Commissioner
Dhaka, February 26: Former Senior Secretary Kazi Habibul Awal has been appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). A notification to this effect was issued by the Cabinet Division on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the names of the other four commissioners were also announced in a separate circular signed by Cabinet Secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam on the orders of the President.
The four commissioners are former District and Sessions Judge Rashida Sultana, Brigadier General (retd) Ahsan Habib Khan, former Senior Secretary Md Alamgir and former Senior Secretary Anisur Rahman.
The President formed a six-member search committee on February 5 to recommend the names of 10 candidates for the post of Chief Election Commissioner and other election commissioners. Justice Obaidul Hasan of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court was made its head.
The search committee held three meetings with eminent persons on February 12 and 13 to select the names of eligible persons. Prominent people who took part in these meetings proposed some names of eligible persons as Election Commissioners.
Earlier, the search committee sought names of qualified persons as election commissioners from various political parties and at the individual level. Many political parties including Awami League sent names. Many also send names in person. However, the BNP did not take part in the process.
A total of 322 names were submitted to the search committee. After that they held a few meetings and finalized the names of 10 out of 322 people. The members of the search committee met the President on the night of February 24 and submitted the list of 10 people.
Note that the last EC term expired on February 14. This is the first EC to be formed according to the law after independence. For this, on January 26, the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners Bill-2022 was passed in the Parliament.
