With just 3 of its upazila/thana level offices left to report, the EC has nearly completed its task of updating the voter list.
Currently the country has a total of 9 crore 20 lakh 9190 voters, according to the EC secretariat.
As per draft data received by the EC Secretariat from the field-level offices, a total of 45 lakh 66,879 people have been registered as fresh voters in the 511 upazilas and thanas following the three-phased update process that started on May 15 this year.
The figure is commensurate with the EC’s estimation of finding 46 lakh voters across the country as part of the latest update.
The draft data indicates male voters significantly outnumber females in the update. Against 25 lakh 58,144 men, only some 20 lakh 8,735 women have been registered as fresh voters in the areas completed.
However, a total of 4 lakh 33,962 voter names have been removed from the electoral rolls in 486 upazilas/Thanas. The process to remove the dead voters from the voter list in 25 other upazilas or thanas still continues.
The 25 upazilas/thanas are Adrasha Sadar and Sadar Dakkhin upazilas of Comilla, Tongi and Sadar of Gazipur, Banshkhali of Chittagong, Matlab Uttar and Matlab Dakkhin of Chandpur, Jamalpur Sadar, Ghatail of Tangail, Thakurgaon Sadar, Cantonment, Tejgaon, Dhanmondi, Motijheel, Mirpur and Lalbagh of Dhaka Metropolitan Area, Bandar and Sadar upazilas of Narayanganj, Mehendiganj and Sadar of Barisal, Muktagacha and Sadar of Mymensingh, Ullapara and Shahjadpur of Sirajganj, and Baniachang of Habiganj.
The three remaining upazilas where the commission is yet to complete registering eligible voters are Kotwali and Pahartoli of Chittagong and Hatia of Noakhali.
Election Commissioner Mohammad Abu Hafiz said the update will be completed in time. “The draft voter list would be published on January 2 to receive any complaints regarding this and the electoral rolls will be finalised after January 31 next,” he said.
On May 15, 2014 the Election Commission started the countrywide update of the voter list with an estimate of five percent growth in the number of voters since the last list was prepared in 2012.
Bangladeshi citizens turning 18 on or before January 1, 2015 and eligible Bangladeshis who missed out on the existing rolls were to be included in the new voter list.
During the update, enumerators collect data of possible voters visiting them door-to-door and subsequently photographs and fingerprints are taken in the Union Parishad or Ward-level voter registration centres.
Duplicate voters are removed through the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) in the voter server.
The updated voter list will be given effect in 2015 on completion of necessary procedures like publication of draft rolls to receive public complaints.
According to section 11 of the Voter List Act 2009, the Election Commission shall update the countrywide electoral rolls during January 2-31 every year.
