EC to Decide by This Month How Many EVM to Be Used in Polls

Election commissioner Md Alamgir on Sunday said the electronic voting machine (EVM) will be used in the forthcoming national parliamentary election. However, the decision as to how many constituencies it would be used has not been finalized yet.

The election commission will decide the numbers by this month as per its capability and rationality. A widespread awareness campaign will run in the constituencies where EVM would be used, Md Alamgir said.

He came up with this disclosure on Sunday while replying to journalists' queries at his office in the Nirbachon Bhaban in Dhaka.

There is a debate in the political arena over using EVM in the election. While BNP is terming the EVM a machine of rigging, AL is in favour of using it in all 300 constituencies.

"EVM will be used. But we still cannot decide in how many constituencies it would be used. We are exchanging views in this regard. We are considering our capacity, availability of EVM, trained manpower, and how many constituencies it would be used. Besides, we are discussing how many EVM we will need, how much money will be required, and how much time we will get if we want to use more EVMs in the election."