Hundred per cent votes were cast at least at 213 polling stations while between 90 per cent and 100 per cent were cast at least at 7,689 stations in the 11th parliamentary elections, marred by reported flaws and fraud.
The total turnout of voters in the 11th parliamentary elections was 89.36 per cent, according to the Bangladesh Election Commission.
The elections were widely perceived as marred by large-scale intimidation of voters, polling agent ousters, capture of centres and massive ballot stuffing.
The election commission on Saturday published the centre-wise election results on its website.
According to the results, 100 per cent votes, including both valid and rejected ballots, were cast at least at 213 of the 40,199 polling centres across the country.
The data says that 100 per cent votes were cast at one polling station or more in 103 of the 300 constituencies while 90 to 90.99 per cent votes were cast at all polling stations of 14 constituencies.
Less than 50 per cent votes were cast in only four constituencies, the data showed.
Asked about the matter, election commissioner M Rafiqul Islam told New Age that the ballots recovered during various irregularities, including fake voting and ballot stuffing, were also counted as rejected votes.
The rejected votes sometimes made the total casting to be 100 per cent, he said, adding that it seemed that the votes cast [at some stations] were shown to be 100 per cent because of ‘the technical method of counting’.
The election commissioner, however, admitted that casting of 100 per cent votes was abnormal and that this figure indicated irregularities.
According to the figures, in the 103 constituencies where 100 per cent votes were cast at one polling station or more, the candidates of ruling Awami League won in most cases.
Political scientist and good governance campaigner Tofail Ahmed told New Age that the percentages of the votes cast were abnormal, pointing out that the EC published the centre-wise results six months after the polling.
‘People have no trust in the EC’s results as the actual votes cast were no more than 20 per cent,’ he said, adding that the EC took the time to publish the results as it manipulated them.
‘But,’ he said, ‘It was hardly a week’s job [for them].’
In the 11th parliamentary polls, ruling Awami League bagged 258 seats while its grand-alliance partner Jatiya Party secured 22.
In the elections, Jatiya Oikya Front candidates secured 8 seats while candidates of other parties secured 9 and three constituencies went to independent candidates.
Most parties demanded cancellation of the election on the ground that it was a ‘controlled’ one.
The opposition parties later did not take part in the local government elections held after the JS polls as part of their protest.-New Age
