The government has begun preparing to take administrative action against officer-in-charge (OC) level police officers who served during the widely discussed “night vote” of the 2018 11th parliamentary election. After steps including compulsory retirement, being made officers on special duty (OSD) and asset investigations were already taken against the deputy commissioners (DCs) and superintendents of police (SPs) who served in that election, the roles of the field-level OCs have now been brought under review. There is a plan to initially send more than 100 OCs into compulsory retirement on completion of 25 years of service.
Multiple sources at police headquarters and the Home Ministry said that full information on the OCs of various police stations in the country’s 64 districts, and of the stations under the then six metropolitan police forces, had been collected, and their current postings, ranks, service status and administrative positions were being checked. A responsible officer at police headquarters, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that in line with the Home Ministry’s instructions, a list of the police inspectors who served as OCs in the 2018 election had been sent to the ministry, which would take the next decision. According to police sources, many of the OCs who served during that election have already retired, some have been promoted to additional SP or assistant SP, and some promotions are held up. It is alleged that OCs played an important field-level role in the reported stamping of ballots and stuffing of boxes on the night before the vote.
The government had earlier sent 33 police officers who served in various districts during the 11th parliamentary election into compulsory retirement, most of them then serving as SPs or deputy commissioners (DCs) of metropolitan police. Home Ministry sources said that since the political changeover of August 5, 2024, up to the previous day, 123 police officers had been sent into compulsory retirement, including the 33 who served as district SPs during the election, and that the process of similar action against the rest was under way. Sources also said that officers who served as OCs in the 2018 election were no longer being posted as OCs at any police station.
It is alleged that under the direction of the then SPs and police commissioners, the OCs acted as coordinators in stamping ballots and stuffing ballot boxes on the night before the vote, and that some OCs, along with SPs and police commissioners, took money from candidates of the Boat symbol. After the 2018 election, opposition parties alleged that large-scale operations were carried out against their leaders and activists before the vote, that election campaigning was obstructed and that ballot boxes were stuffed at many centres the night before; the then government and Election Commission denied the allegations, but the term “night vote” permanently entered the country’s political lexicon. According to the report of the interim government’s inquiry commission formed on the 2014, 2018 and 2024 national elections held under the Awami League government, ballots were stamped and stuffed into boxes at about 80 percent of the country’s centres on the night before the 11th parliamentary election of December 30, 2018, in an operation that ran from 10 p.m. until 3 a.m. The report also said that 100 percent of votes were cast at 213 centres, that the turnout was 99 percent or more at 122 centres and 90 to 99 percent at 7,689 centres, and that large numbers of voters were prevented from entering centres on polling day.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report