Prisoners can vote through postal ballot for first time
The move aims to ensure that eligible voters can participate in the democratic process despite being behind bars
For the first time in Bangladesh, prisoners and individuals in legal custody will be able to exercise their voting rights through the in-country postal voting (ICPV) system in the upcoming 13th national elections and the referendum.
The Election Commission (EC) issued the guidelines under Rule 10A of the Election Conduct Rules 2008 (Amendment 2025) today (24 December).
The move aims to ensure that eligible voters can participate in the democratic process despite being behind bars.
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The guidelines, signed by Mohammad Monir Hossain, deputy secretary of the Election Conduct-2 Branch, were sent to the Inspector General of Prisons.
Under the guidelines, the EC will launch a digital platform for prisoner voter registration. Each prison will nominate two representatives to facilitate the registration process. Interested prisoners must submit a sealed and signed printed list to the EC and upload voter information in .xls or .csv format on the designated portal.
Once registered, prisoners will receive an "outgoing envelope" (Form-9A) through the prison authorities. It will include separate ballot papers for the parliamentary election and the referendum, voting instructions, a declaration form (Form-8), and a "return envelope" (Form-10B) addressed to the relevant returning officer.
The parliamentary ballot will not list candidate names; it will only show the allotted symbol with a blank space for marking their vote. Voters will mark their choice with a tick or cross next to the symbol and sign the declaration using their name and national ID number. If a voter cannot sign, another registered voter may attest on their behalf.
To ensure secrecy, voters will place completed ballots in two small envelopes, which will then be sealed inside a larger yellow envelope along with the signed declaration. The self-adhesive envelopes require no postage or stamps.
After voting, prison authorities will securely collect the envelopes and hand them over to the local postal department, which will prioritise delivering them to the office of the relevant returning officer, said the Election Commission.
