The Election Commission will not give any illegal instructions to the police during the upcoming local government elections, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin has said.The CEC made the comment on Wednesday after inaugurating a training course titled “Training to Enhance the Skills and Capabilities of Police for Performing Election Duties Professionally.” The training course was inaugurated at the Rajarbagh Police Auditorium.

The chief election commissioner said: “Our commitment is total. We have sought the cooperation of the police in conducting the local government elections. The Commission has a constitutional responsibility to ensure a free and fair election, just as the police have constitutional and legal responsibilities.”

He said: “No illegal instructions will come from the Commission. They (the police) have said that they will work to ensure a credible election.”

Asked whether it would be possible to hold local government elections given the current law-and-order situation, the CEC said: “The situation is not worse now than it was during the 13th election. And we have confidence in the police. There is a political party-led government in power.”

Asked whether the police would be able to perform their election duties free from pressure, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ali Hasan Fakir said: “There is a political party-led government now, but it is a democratic government. We will take all the measures necessary to make the election free and fair, in accordance with the Election Commission’s advice.”

Regarding efforts to restore the police’s image over the past six months, the IGP said: “I believe our success has been 100%.”

SM/CitizenTimes