DHAKA, July 1, 2025 (BSS) – The Election Commission (EC) has issued a polls guidelines titled “Polling Centre Establishment and Management Guidelines 2025” for the upcoming national election empowering its own officials with sole authority in setting up polling centres.

The guideline, which appeared as a gazette notification on Thursday, EC field-level officials were entrusted with the responsibilities of setting up polling centres, a task which was previously performed by committees at the upazila and district levels.

“It is mandatory to set up the polling centre at the best places for conducting a free, fair national election,” the notification said adding a fair election largely depend on fixing polling centres at appropriate spots.

It said the polling centres should be located in places where people could cast votes freely remaining beyond influences of any person, community or party.

The guideline said as per rules of article eight of the Representation of the People Order 1972, the EC is the sole authority of publishing gazette of the final list of polling centres alongside the polls schedule.

The EC said instructions were issued for its field level officials for preparing the primary lists of suitable poling centres following the guideline to be published as proposed centres.

The EC will finalize the list after accurately considering possible objections, claims and recommendations ahead of publishing a gazette on policing centres.

The guidelines stated that one polling centre should be designated for every 3,000 voters on an average, and one room for every 500 male voters and 400 female voters.

On May 21, the fifth EC led by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM NasirUddin approved the guidelines.

“We have scrapped the committee system,” said Election Commissioner Brigadier General (retd) Abul Fazal Mohammad Salaullah told Journalist after the meeting.