Dhaka: The Election Commission (EC) has approved the draft delimitation of parliamentary constituencies ahead of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad election. The technical committee has proposed changes to 42 constituencies, of which the EC has approved minor changes to the boundaries of 39 constituencies, said EC Commissioner Md. Anwarul Islam Sarkar during a briefing at the EC building. EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed was also present at the briefing.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the existing boundaries of 250 constituencies have been kept intact as no objections were received. The Election Commissioner mentioned that the technical committee recommended increasing one seat in the constituency with the highest number of voters in Gazipur and reducing one seat from the constituency with the lowest number of voters in Bagerhat. The average number of voters in 64 districts was determined to be 420,500. Claims and objections regarding the delimitation of constituencies will be accepted until August 10, after which a final decision will be made following seat-wise hearings.
Anwarul Islam Sarkar stated that both minor and major amendments have been proposed in 39 seats, including Panchagarh-1 and 2, Rangpur-3, Sirajganj-1 and 2, Satkhira-3 and 4, Shariatpur-2 and 3, and various constituencies in Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Sylhet, Brahmanbaria, Comilla, Noakhali, Chittagong, and Bagerhat. The EC has the jurisdiction to determine the boundaries of the parliamentary constituencies as per Articles 119 and 124 of the Constitution.
In line with the decision of the National Consensus Commission, a 9-member specialized technical committee was formed on July 16 to determine the boundaries, including experts such as geographers, urbanists, and statisticians. This team thoroughly reviewed 300 constituencies across 64 districts, prioritizing the administrative system, geographical integrity, and census data.