Search committee shortlists 20 names

The search committee for the Election Commission on Tuesday made a shortlist of 20 names from 125 names proposed by 28 political parties including the ruling Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
‘The search committee made a primary list of 20 scrutinising the names proposed by 28 political parties,’ cabinet secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam told reporters emerging from the committee meeting held at the Supreme Court Judges Lounge.
He, however, declined to disclose the names saying that the committee would submit 10 names for the commission to the president by February 8.
He also said that the search committee disagreed with the eminent citizens’ suggestion of making the names public.
On Monday, the search committee held a meeting with 12 eminent citizens who also urged the committee to recommend enactment of a law on the appointment of the chief election commissioner and other commissioners as per constitutional stipulations.
Earlier on January 28, the committee asked for five names for the commission from each of 31 political parties who had talks with the president on the reconstitution of the commission and 28 of the parties sent 125 names.
Prioritising former bureaucrats, the ruling Awami League proposed names of former secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office Molla Wahiduzzaman, former inspector general of police Nur Mohammad, former principal secretary to the prime minister MA Karim, former senior secretary of local government division Monzur Hossain and former information commissioner Sadeka Halim, party leaders said
BNP prioritised professionals as it proposed the names of local government expert Tofail Ahmed, former Bangladesh Bank governor Salahuddin Ahmed, Dhaka University teacher Tasnim A Siddique, former secretary Mohammad Asaf-ud-Daula and Supreme Court lawyer Shahdeen Malik, BNP leaders said.
Six political parties of the BNP-led alliance – Bangladesh Jatiya Party, Liberal Democratic Party, Khelafat Majlish, Bangladesh National Awami Party, Muslim League and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam – submitted six more names along with the five named given by BNP.
The six individuals are former cabinet secretary Saadat Hussain, former law secretary Md Alauddin Sarkar, former inspector general of police Azizul Haque, former election commissioner M Sakhawat Hussain, retired brigadier general AZM Fazlur Rahman and former Jahangirnagar University professor Dilara Chowdhury.
Giving no name, the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal faction led by ASM Rob suggested the formation of a strong election commission while Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish and Gana Forum submitted neither any proposal nor any names.
On January 25, president Abdul Hamid formed the six-member search committee led by Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain of the Appellate Division asking it to recommend two names against each positions in the commission — the chief d four election commissioners — in 10 working days.
The tenure of the incumbent chief election commissioner and four election commissioners, who were recommended by the previous search committee led by Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, would expire within mid-February.
The president held talks with 31 of the 40 registered political parties on the reconstitution of the commission between December 18, 2016 and January 18, 2017.
The search committee is scheduled for today to sit in a meeting with former chief election commissioner M Abu Hena, senior lawyer Rokanuddin Mahmud, daily Samakal editor Golam Sarwar and daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam.

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