Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has claimed that the appointment of an “identified political person” to the Election Commission Secretariat poses a serious threat to holding neutral elections.

The party also expressed deep concern and protested the appointment.

In a statement on Sunday, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar criticised the appointment of Md Shamsul Alam as an additional secretary to the Election Commission Secretariat on a one-year contractual basis.

He said, “The Election Commission is a sensitive constitutional institution whose core foundations are neutrality and public confidence. However, Md Shamsul Alam, who was appointed to the post of additional secretary on a contractual basis, had previously been publicly involved in various activities of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). He also held an important position in a BNP committee after his retirement.”

“Appointing such a person to an institution like the Election Commission is contrary to free, fair and neutral elections,” he said.

Mia Golam Parwar said, “If anyone had been deprived of their due rights during their professional career, they could receive promotion or other benefits in accordance with the rules. However, bringing back a 67-year-old person who had been directly involved in politics after retirement to a sensitive institution like the Election Commission was unacceptable.”

He said an additional secretary plays an important role in conducting local government elections. He claimed that holding a neutral election under a person involved in BNP politics was not possible.

He further said the BNP’s official media cell was publicising the appointment in a “festive atmosphere”, which indicated an attempt to turn the Election Commission into an institution under partisan influence.

The Jamaat secretary general called for the immediate cancellation of the controversial appointment and urged the authorities to ensure the appointment of universally acceptable and neutral individuals to the Election Commission and all constitutional institutions in the future.