Army to be deployed from Dec 24 to Jan 2

Army will be deployed for 10 days from December 24 in the forthcoming national election slated for December 30, said Election Commission Secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed on Thursday night.

"The army will be deployed as the striking force from December 24 to January 2," he told reporters replying to a question.

The EC took the decision after its meeting over the election security held at Nirbachan Bhaban with Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda in the chair, according to mews agencies.

Top representatives from police, Rapid Action Battalion, Border Guard Bangladesh, Ansar and VDP, intelligence agencies and the Armed Forces Division as well as 66 returning officers and superintendents of police (SPs) of all the districts joined the meeting.

Helal Uddin said the EC Secretariat has sent a proposal to the Commission for deploying BGB members from December 22, but the final decision will be taken on Saturday.

In reply to another query, he said a proposal was placed at the meeting to slow down mobile network from 4G to 2G for a certain time during the election to curb the spread of propaganda and rumour online.

But the EC did not take any decision in this regard, he said.

EC officials said over 700,000 security men alongside the armed forces members will be there in the field to maintain the law and order on the election day.