Police have classified 64% of the polling centres across the country as “important” for Sunday’s elections.
According to police sources, they do not use the term “risky” for polling centres – meaning they are vulnerable to violence – as it leaves a negative impact on people regarding security arrangements.
There are a total of 40,199 polling centres across the country, of which police have assessed 25,827 as “important.”
Police have already started working round the clock to check security arrangements for the elections – particularly in the important centres.
Responsible sources at the Police Headquarters said voters will exercise their voting rights at 40,183 polling centres across the country. Of them, 25,827 centres have been identified as “important” or “risky.” The remaining 14,446 centres have been considered normal.
In the remote areas of the Chittagong Hill Tracts and hilly areas, 1,632 have been identified as important areas.
Sources said 64.27% of the total voting centres are vulnerable to violence. The remaining 35.73% are general centres.
Around 600,000 members of the law enforcement agencies will directly be in the field across the country.
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) Director General (DG) Benazir Ahmed on Thursday said 10,000 RAB officials would perform duties at the field level during the elections.
“The Election Commission has given us permission to use helicopters, and four helicopters will be deployed. Two army helicopters will be ready in Dhaka to fly out and stop violence in any part of the country,” the DG added.
An official at the Police Headquarters said they have divided polling centres in two sections: “plain land area” and “special area.” The polling centres have been classified as “important” and “general” in these two areas.
If a candidate or his or her relatives live near a polling centre, that centre has been identified as an important one.
The geographical location and the installation of the polling centre are also taken into consideration. Remote areas have been identified as special areas. Among them, there are polling stations in areas which make law and order traffic difficult, like hilly areas and char land areas, said the official.
Police Headquarters Assistant Inspector General (AIG-Media) Sohel Rana told the Dhaka Tribune that police do not see any centre as risky. Necessary measures have already been taken to conduct a fair and peaceful election. Police has taken special security measures in the important centres besides the general centres.
Sources said that in the police list, there are 2,112 polling centres in the Dhaka metropolitan area. Of these, more than half of the 1,267 centres have been identified as important. Of the 591 centres in the Chittagong Metropolitan area, 543 have been identified as important, and 48 are general centres.
In the Khulna Metropolitan area, 99 out of 309 centres were general centres, but 210 were considered important. In the Rajshahi Metropolitan area, 168 have been identified as important out of 196 centres. In the Barisal Metropolitan area, 126 centres have been identified as important out of 197 and in the Sylhet Metropolitan area, 202 centres have been identified as important out of 293.
When asked about the important and risky centres, Election Commissioner Rafiqul Islam told the Dhaka Tribune: “We don’t call any centre a risky centre. Instead we call it an important centre and have taken special measures there.
“We not only measure an important centre by the law and order situation, but also measure the circumstances of the area like char land, hill tract area, and river area. For example – every centre of the Chauhali Upazila of Sirajganj district is important, because goods will be transported by boats for voting.”
Considering the areas as important, the numbers of law enforcement have been increased in those areas. Apart from deploying forces, special instructions have been given to those who are out of the centre, to focus on the important areas, he added.
Asked whether helicopter will be used in the remote areas of the Chittagong hill tracts, he said helicopters would be used in important areas if needed.
