Dhaka, June 23:
Former Chief Election Commissioner of Bangladesh, KM Nurul Huda, was assaulted by a mob at his residence in Dhaka on Sunday, hours before he was arrested by police in connection with a case filed over alleged electoral irregularities.
Huda, who served as CEC from 2017 to 2022, oversaw the controversial 2018 general elections in which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League secured a sweeping victory. His arrest marks a significant development, as this is believed to be the first time a former chief election commissioner in Bangladesh has been taken into custody over election-related charges.
Earlier in the day, the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, lodged a complaint with the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station against Huda and 23 others—including two other former CECs, ten election commissioners, and political figures such as Sheikh Hasina—alleging wide-scale electoral manipulation.
Viral video footage from the day showed a mob attacking Huda at his Uttara residence. He was seen being pelted with shoes and physically assaulted while wearing a lungi and a T-shirt. The mob also chanted slogans against him. Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Deputy Commissioner for Uttara Division, Mohidul Islam, confirmed that a team from Uttara West Police Station arrested Huda around 7:30 PM and placed him in Detective Branch custody for his safety.
In an official statement, Bangladesh’s interim government condemned the mob violence and warned citizens against taking the law into their own hands.
“The chaotic situation created by the mob and the physical assault on the accused has come to the attention of the government,” the statement read. “Attacking an accused individual is illegal, violates the rule of law, and constitutes a criminal offence. Law enforcement agencies will identify and take action against those responsible for inciting such violence.”
The government further emphasized that all accused individuals will be tried in accordance with the country’s legal framework and urged the public to remain patient and respectful of due process.
“All citizens are being requested to play a tolerant role in the struggle for establishing justice,” it added.
The BNP’s legal move also implicates two other former CECs—Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad (2014 elections) and Kazi Habibul Awal (2024 elections)—in addition to election commissioners from multiple terms.
Huda’s tenure as Chief Election Commissioner became the subject of fierce criticism following the December 2018 general election, where widespread allegations of ballot-box stuffing the night before polling day were raised by opposition parties. The ruling Awami League won 288 of the 300 parliamentary seats, sparking domestic and international concern over the electoral process.
