'EC wants to hold participatory elections'

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal Sunday said the Commission is taking opinion from the stakeholders to make the next general elections a participatory and inclusive one. "We want to hold a more participatory general election. That's why we will be enriched from the opinion of teachers," he told a dialogue here. 

The dialogue was arranged with teachers at Nirbachan Bhaban. Awal said the aim of the newly formed EC has already been exposed, while its work is to hold the parliamentary elections and polls to the local government bodies. 

The actual opinion of people will be taken by holding the dialogues, he said, adding that the Commission is taking opinion from the stakeholders concerned to understand what it should do to hold free, fair and participatory elections.

Prof Dr Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Prof Dr M Anwar Hossain of Dhaka University, Prof Dr Abdul Mannan Chowdhury of World University of Bangladesh, Prof M Abul Kasem Majumder and Prof Dr Sadeka Halim of Dhaka University, Dr Burhan Uddin Khan, Prof Dr Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah, Dr Akhter Hossain, Lailufar Yesmine, vice-chancellor of Southeast University Prof Dr AFM Mofizul Islam, Prof Muhammad Yahiya Akhter of Chittagong University, Al Masud Hasanuzzaman of Jahangirnagar University and pro-vice chancellor of Independent University Dr Niaz Ahmad Khan, among others, joined the meeting.

Election Commissioners Begum Rashida Sultana, Brigadier General (Retd) Ahsan Habib Khan and Md Alamgir and Anisur Rahman were present.