Staff Reporter:
Former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has told a Dhaka court that the 2024 general election was “dummy and one-sided” due to the absence of political consensus, though he denied allegations of vote rigging.
He made the remarks during a remand hearing at the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court in Dhaka on Thursday, following his arrest in connection with charges of sedition, corruption, and abuse of constitutional authority.
The court of Magistrate Mostafizur Rahman granted police a three-day remand, despite law enforcers seeking ten days to interrogate the former election chief.
During the hearing, Prosecutor Omar Faruk Faruqui described Awal as “a dummy Chief Election Commissioner,” alleging that he oversaw an election participated in only by the ruling Awami League and its allies. “While polling centres stood empty, he claimed a fair election was taking place,” the prosecutor told the court.
In response, Awal reportedly acknowledged, “I admit I held a dummy election. It became one-sided due to the absence of political compromise. However, I firmly deny any allegations of vote rigging.”
Addressing controversy over increased honorariums for election officials under his tenure, Awal said, “Expenses may have risen slightly due to inflation.”
In his observations, the magistrate remarked, “You had a decorated civil service career. The nation expected better from you.” Awal, in turn, reportedly told the court, “No election in Bangladesh has ever been free from controversy. Even the first election under Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1973 was not immune to political interference.”
Awal was arrested on Wednesday by detectives from Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Detective Branch (DB) in the capital’s Moghbazar area. His arrest comes amid ongoing investigations into the 2024 general election, which was widely criticised both domestically and internationally after major opposition parties boycotted the vote.
The initial case against him was filed on 22 June by BNP National Executive Committee member Salauddin Khan at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station, accusing Awal of violating his constitutional obligations and conducting an election through intimidation and without meaningful public participation. The case was later expanded to include charges of sedition, fraud, and embezzlement.
Kazi Habibul Awal, a former senior bureaucrat, served as CEC during the 12th national parliamentary election held on 7 January 2024, during the final months of Sheikh Hasina’s regime. The political fallout from that election continues to be a flashpoint in Bangladesh’s ongoing political transition.
