Udenrigsudvalget 2023-24
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Public Rejection, Violence and Misdemeanour during and after the
Farcical Dummy Election held on 7
th
January, 2024: Part II
Submitted at 10 PM
On 07.01.2024
Prepared by HR Team BNP
In national and international media, the news of the farcical 7
th
January election
held by the fascists Awami League regime in Bangladesh and the many
discrepancies around it are flooding at the moment. This is our second report of
the day to record the reported cases of violence, misdemeanours, and public
rejection of the dummy election all across Bangladesh.
1.
An Election of Discrepancies:
Cases of openly bribing voters, giving seals in front of agents, agents from non-
Awami candidates shoved out of the centre, ballots sealed at night and snatching
away ballots became very common since last night. Also fake agents and agents
who has absolutely no knowledge about their candidates were also revealed
through media reports. The model of vote rigging and many misdemeanours
around that has changed over the course of time after lunch.
When the turnout rate at 3 PM was announced to be only 27.5%, the
presiding officers and their subordinates were forced to stamp as many
ballots as they can and stuff the ballot boxes. That is why, while official app
(available for downloading in mobiles) of the Election Commission showed
only 28% vote casted till 4 PM, the Chief Election Commissioner announced
an unbelievable statistics of 40%. While many Presiding officers and
Assistant Presiding Officers of the poll centres obeyed their orders to stuff
ballots during the last hours and also sign off the result sheets before the
voting ended, some of them protested and made public statements through
social media and news media about such discrepancies.
Photo of voter turnout rate on Election Commission’s Official App on 4 PM:
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News reports and social media contents also revealed a uniquely disturbing fact
about this dummy election. In many of the poll centres, the authority let a good
number of infants and underage children to stamp some ballot papers and counted
them as legal votes. This created a large flow of criticism against the fascist
regime and their docile election commission in the online media and social
networks.
Photos of Children stamping ballots:
Also, throughout the day, many independent and Jatiya Party candidates have
withdrawn their candidacy from this farcical election and accused the incumbent
fascist regime of vote rigging. Some of them even expressed their solidarity with
 URU, Alm.del - 2023-24 - Bilag 93: Henvendelse af 11. januar 2024 fra Voice for People om situationen i Bangladesh
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BNP and other pro-democratic parties in boycotting the dummy election. GM
Quader (President, Jatiya Party) have accused the fascist Awami League regime
of orchestrating another robbing of election.
And even though fake lines were seen to the created in front of the polling centres
where foreign observers were scheduled to visit, those people were seen to
quickly disburse right after the observers left the vicinity. Even after such
“efforts” made by the fascist regime, many observers felt that the election was
truly a sham, and a British observer said that he found a North Korea model of
democracy in this county.
Many news reports and social media posts evidence such incidents that are being
commonly carried out in favour of the candidates.
News Links:
(1)
Video: 10% votes cast in 10 minutes in Chandina, Cumilla
(2)
BanglaOutLook: I found the North Korea model Here: British
observer Jez Coulson (18:44, 07.01,24)
(3)
Video show fake crowd of voters in a booth
(4)
Sunamgonj-4 Jatiya Party candidate publishing a video show of Sholghar
Dweeni Senior Madrasa center- fake voting casting by the Chhatra League
activists in favor of Awami League candidate Dr. Sadiq.
(5)
A proud statement from a youth who cast 15 votes alone !
(6)
At the voting center in Bijaynagar, Brahmanbaria, a grand celebration of
vote rigging is taking place
(7)
Pratidinkar Thakurgaon: National Party candidate Rezaur Raji of
Thakurgaon-1 constituency abstain from voting by expressing solidarity
with the BNP & other parties.
(8)
Video shows in Khulna -6 constituency Awami League workers are
bringing elderly people from their homes to the polling stations in each
room of the Bamiya High School and casting votes themselves.
 URU, Alm.del - 2023-24 - Bilag 93: Henvendelse af 11. januar 2024 fra Voice for People om situationen i Bangladesh
(9)
Ajker BaiyadangaDotCom: Allegations of not cooperating against the
administration by independent candidates in Thakurgaon-2 constituency.
Request to suspend voting in five centers, including the Badambadi center.
(10)
Facebook Video shows Confession of shameless vote rigging by
Obaidur Rahman, a prominent 27-year-old General Secretary of
Awami League in Dihi Union, Sharsha Upazila, Jashore district. He
acknowledges his record-breaking fraudulent votes in the 2018
election.
(11)
Jamuna TV: Public voting by minors! Run after seeing the camera!
(2:20PM)
(12)
The Daily Star(YouTube): After casting the vote, voters are standing in
line again
(13)
Prothom Alo: This is an ‘unprecedented’ election-an Opinion
(14)
Prothom Alo: I saw no polling agents except boat: CEC (07 Jan 2024,
13: 09)
(15)
Prothom Alo: Two handed over to police after mob beating for ‘buying
votes’ (07 Jan 2024, 10: 36)
(16)
The Daily Star: They line up to 'vote' when TV camera appears (Sun Jan 7,
2024 05:49 PM)
(17)
The Daily Star : Eight candidates boycott polls over ‘irregularities’
(Sunday Jan 7, 2024 05:09 PM)
(18)
Prothom Alo: Long queue outside the polling station, vanished in 10
minutes (07 Jan 2024, 15: 45)
(19)
Prothom Alo: AL does vote robbing elections, this time too: GM Quader
(07 Jan 2024, 16: 12)
(20)
Prothom Alo: Non-voters line up at a centre in Sylhet (07 Jan 2024, 14: 04)
(21)
Jamuna TV : Polling Agent of 'Boat' fled away after notifying camera
person. (1:10 PM)
 URU, Alm.del - 2023-24 - Bilag 93: Henvendelse af 11. januar 2024 fra Voice for People om situationen i Bangladesh
(22)
News24: Coming to vote, hearing that the voting is already done, what is
happening in Chanpara!
(23)
Facebook video showing a government officer in charge of a center telling
how ballot papers have been snatched and forcefully votes casted on boat
night before election.(07.01.2024)
(24)
Jamuna TV: At the Dohar Shainpukur center at Dhaka-1 constituency,
children are casting votes, flee away after notifying cameraman (1:00PM).
(25)
Jamuna TV : In Nawabganj,Dhakaa game of thief-police is underway!
publicly illegal vote on the boat.(2:00PM)
(26)
Prothom Alo: In a center in Sylhet city, even non-voters are in line (1:09
PM)
(27)
The Daily Star: Jatiyo Party being used as sacrificial lamb said party
chairman GM Quader (5:00 PM, 07.01.2024)
(28)
Prothom Alo: A sudden long line before the arrival of foreign observers at
Banani Model School, empty after leaving (15:24, 07.01.2024)
(29)
Facebook video shows awami league workers are filling ballot box with
false vote at a booth in Comilla 11 constituency.
(30)
Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader's Constituency of
Noakhali-5 in Kabirhat, Awami League leaders and workers and the
Assistant Presiding Officer himself are casting fake votes. (07.01.2024)
(31)
DBC News: Independent candidate Major Jasim gave the reason for
quitting the dummy election (07.01.2023)
(32)
The Daily Star: If one can show the ink mark on the finger, a ration card
will be provided (2:14 PM, 07.01.2024)
(33)
Prothom Alo : The son of the Minister of Industry has been caught casting
a bogus vote in Narshingdi (14:52, 07.01.2024)
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(34)
News24: In Rupganj, entries in the counting sheet are being made even
before the vote count. (1:00PM)
(35)
Facebook Video showing Awami League workers are stamping ballots
illegally.
(36)
A protesting youth is preventing his mother from voting in the Dummy
Election
2.
Empty poll centres and Over-exaggerated Turnout Rates:
From the early morning till the closing of voting at 4 PM on 7
th
January, 2024,
most of the poll centres were seen to be almost empty or fully empty. Animals
and playful children were seen to be running through the poll centres without any
hindrances.
As stated above, It was announced by Election Commission Secretary
Jahangir Alam before 1 PM that about 18.5% voters turned out and before
3 PM it rose to 27.15%; but yet, at the end of the voting period, Chief
Election Commissioner most unbelievably announced that 40% votes were
casted in the election!
Though the Election Commission was wantonly declaring the turnout rates, the
independent observers and journalists who visited many poll centres marked such
statistics as “completely unbelievable”. Media reports also revealed that in all the
poll centres, Presiding Officers were forced to sign on the Result Sheet before the
voting was even closed. That explains a part of the discrepancy that took place
for showing such ridiculous farcical statistics.
Also, it is important to mention that there are about 120 million voters across
Bangladesh. 40% of that number stands at 48 million people. Now as there are
about 43,000 poll centres across the country, the voter turnout rate per poll centre
must be at least 1,116 and each poll centre on average must have a turnout of 140
voters per hour to reach the figure of 40% of the total voters. But the scenes that
were seen during the voting time makes it unbelievable that such figure could be
reached by the ballot cast during the votes even if all the children and animals
present at the empty poll centres could stamp two ballots each!
We have collected a huge number of news reports, photos and videos as evidence
to those facts. It is not practically possible to show all of these and so we are only
sharing some of those in the following part of this report.
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Photos of empty polling centres run over by animals:
News Links:
(1)
(2)
ManabZamin: "Zero Vote in 19 Poll Centres in Khagrachari" (07.01.2024)
Al Jazeera: "Bangladesh counts votes in low-turnout election boycotted by
opposition" (07.01.2024)
At the voting center in Nawabganj, media is being restricted with illegal
instructions (2.00PM)
The Daily Star: Turnout still low in many centres at halfway stage (01:29
PM, 07,01,2024)
The Daily star: The percentage of votes cast in the 12th parliamentary
election till 12:10pm was 18.5 percent. (02:06 PM, 07.01.2024)
Journalists of DW Bangla's observation during vote (2:00PM, 07.01.2023)
The Daily Star: Chief Election Commissioner said Votes are being cast
slowly, and I have found polling agents, all from the same party (12:26,
07.01.2024)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
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(8)
News24 Channel: Supporters of the boat in Rupganj's polling center are
creating disturbances.(1.00PM, 07.01.2023)
The Daily star: Voter turnout 27.15pc till 3:00pm: EC (Sun Jan 7,
2024 04:07 )
(9)
(10)
12th parliamentary election in pictures by ' Prothom Alo’ (07 Jan 2024,
14: 20)
(11)
Jamuna TV: All day 126 votes; within half an hour, 700 plus! How is
it possible?
(12)
BBC NEWS: The BBC reporters are narrating the election scenario until
noon.
(13)
The Daily Star : The guilt that comes with voting at a farcical election
(14)
The Hindustan Times: Bangladesh turnout low in election. In 2018, it
was more than 80% (3:00 PM)
(15)
REUTERS: Bangladesh turnout low in election set to keep PM Hasina in
power (January 7, 20248:34 PM)
(16)
DW Bangla: Election: Awami League and BNP are on debate based on
voter presence.
3.
Continuous violence on the Election Day:
From early midnight before the 7
th
January, 2024, news media and social media
platforms were flooded with cases of extreme violence and infighting between
the local fascist Awami League goons and the workers of the so-called
independent candidates- almost all of them are from Awami League too.
On 7
th
January, 2024 at around 12:30 PM, at least 2 people were shot in
Chattogram in a clash between activists of Awami League nominated candidate
Mohiuddin Bachchu and independent candidate Mohammad Manjur Alam, later
the police identified the shooter to be Shamim Azad, a follower of Chattogram
City Corporation Councillor Wasim Uddin (Vice president, Chattogram
Metropolitan Jubo League).
Also, news reports confirm that children were injured by explosion of crude
bombs, journalists and women were beaten by violent AL activists, crude bombs
 URU, Alm.del - 2023-24 - Bilag 93: Henvendelse af 11. januar 2024 fra Voice for People om situationen i Bangladesh
were blasted here and there, houses of general people were attacked and
vandalised, violent mob clashes happened throughout the day amid rigging of
voting process in many of the constituencies.
When the time of the polls was nearing to the conclude, the fascist Awami League
goons were acting more aggressive to “capture” the polling centres and cast fake
votes and stamped a huge number of ballots and that has caused significant hue
and cry in many of the constituencies. The following references shall be shown
as evidences of such violences.
News Links:
1.
Dhaka Tribune: "Chittagong-10: Two shot in clash between activists of
AL, independent candidate" (07.01.2024 at 12:30 PM)
2.
The Daily Star: "Ctg clash: Gun-toting man identified as BCL activist, say
police" (07.01.2024 at 3:27 PM)
3.
The Daily Star: 4 including child hurt in crude bomb explosion in
Hazaribagh (02:14 PM,07.01.2024)
4.
The Daily Star: Two suffer bullet wounds in clash near Chattogram polling
centre (2:14PM, 07.01.2024)
5.
Dhaka Tribune: Chittagong-10: Two shot in clash between activists of AL,
independent candidate (Sunday, January 07, 2024)
6.
BDnews24: "Awami League supporters storm Chattogram polling centre,
attempt to stamp votes" (07.01.2024)
7.
The Daily Star: Ctg-16 AL aspirant Mostafizur's candidacy cancelled (Sun
Jan 7, 2024 06:12 PM)
The above information has been collected by the Human Rights team of BNP
from print and electronic media. This report is prepared on the basis of partial
information and actual incidents which have been caused by the Anti- Democratic
forces including the State apparatus preventing the BNP activists and general
people to participate in the upcoming program for restoration of democracy, rule
of law, human rights and justice. The actual figure is much higher than this. This
report is therefore temporary and only for instant ready reference for all
concerned.