This is for the first time any AL team went to the Election Commission (EC) since MA Aziz assumed office as the chief election commissioner (who is now on three months leave) on May 23, 2005.

The delegation led by MA Mannan talked about different issues regarding the upcoming general election and the ongoing correction process in the much controversial updated voter list during the one-hour meeting with EC Secretary Abdur Rashid Sarkar at his office.

The team also handed over a letter of the party General Secretary Abdul Jalil to the EC secretary with several suggestions and observations in these matters. No side, however, agreed to reveal the details of the letter further.

"We expressed our satisfaction to the EC secretary that they (EC) have started correcting the updated voter list but at the same time we have informed him about the irregularities and other relevant issues," Mannan said while talking to the reporters.

"The field-level election officials are not enlisting the eligible voters," he alleged adding that the election commission's publicity campaign regarding the amendment of the voter list was not sufficient. The enumerators are more interested in deleting names of the voters from the list rather than enlist the eligible ones, Mannan further noted.

The EC secretary admitted the scarcity of voter forms and assured them of taking necessary steps to solve this problem as well as other irregularities, if any, the AL delegation said.

Two other members of the delegation were -- Asaduzzaman Lucky and Shahjahan Siddiqui.

Hailing the initiative of the AL, EC Secretary Abdur Rashid Sarkar later at a press conference said that the inclusion of the eligible voters is as much important as the exclusion of duplicate names from the voter roll.

Admitting the allegation that the EC circular on voter list correction was not published in many well-circulated newspapers, Sarkar said that directives have been given to the section concerned in this regard.

"We have got some complains, particularly from Chittagong," the EC secretary said adding that they have got the allegation that a vested quarter there, is creating pressure not to exclude names from the voter list.

Sarkar also noted down complains from the reporters who found irregularities during their spot visit to different parts in the capital, including ward no 42, where 5000 voters were wiped from the voter roll in 2000.

SHEIKH HASINA AND HER FAMILY ENROLLED AS VOTER
AL president Shiekh Hasina and her family members yesterday submitted the voter forms to the assistant registration officer (ARO) concerned, EC sources said.

A total of 11 voter forms were submitted to Deen Muhammad, the ARO of the Dhanmondi from the Sudha Sadan, the sources added.