Election Commission published the final voters' list for the upcoming 12th parliamentary polls this afternoon with 11,96,91,633 voters.

This is the final voter list before polls, said Election Commission's NID wing Director General AKM Humayun Kabir.

He mentioned that there are 60,771,579 male voters, 58,919,202 female voters, and 852 hijra voters.

The BNP wants to make a final push to realise its demand for holding the next general election under a neutral caretaker administration only after the top brass finds the party's Dhaka city units fully prepared for an all-out movement.

Insiders said the BNP was successful in staging massive protests in the last few months despite various obstacles from the ruling party and administration. It all has fuelled enthusiasm among leaders and activists who now can't wait anymore for the final phase of the movement.

But the party high-ups were not satisfied with the performance of the Dhaka city leaders on the last two occasions -- the December 10 Dhaka rally and January 11 mass sit-ins.

These issues were on the agenda in the BNP standing committee meeting, the highest policymaking body of the party, on Thursday night, when the leaders discussed in detail the future course of action and analysed the two big events.

Party's acting chairman Tarique Rahman virtually chaired the meeting where they also talked about the arrest of Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and standing committee member Mirza Abbas and the police raid on the party's Nayapaltan headquarters.

Contacted yesterday, standing committee member Goyeshwar Chandra Roy said the movement has already begun and gradually it will be intensified. "Our movement will continue till the goal is achieved. The intensity of the movement will increase and at some point, success will come."

Sources said the meeting discussed Dhaka city north BNP Convener Aman Ullah Aman's comment that Bangladesh will be run under the leadership of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia after December 10.

"Things got complicated after his (Aman's) statement. The party must seek an explanation from him why he made such a comment," said another standing committee member, wishing not to be named, adding that Tarique asked Fakhrul to look into it.

Meeting sources said a few members questioned Aman's loyalty to the party especially because he secured bail the day after he was arrested from the party office on December 7.

Aman, as the party's Dhaka north unit convener, was supposed to preside over the Nayapaltan sit-in on January 11.  But he took the role of the moderator while standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain was in the chair.

Before this, a rumour spread that the Dhaka city north BNP would be dissolved. Tarique even particularly wanted to see the presence of the unit leaders and activists in the sit-ins.

When Mirza Abbas was addressing the audience during the Nayapaltan event, a central leader showed Tarique the presence of Dhaka north BNP leaders and activists through a video call.

The meeting also discussed the formation of "Samomona Ganatantrik Jote", which came into being with 15 organisations at the BNP chairperson's Gulshan office.

A standing committee member asked Tarique how can such an alliance can be formed right at the chairperson's office when the party is focusing on simultaneous movement. 

Referring to Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader's mockery that 54 parties are against Sheikh Hasina and it seems 54 horses will lay 54 eggs, the BNP leader said, "It needs to be known who was behind that sudden initiative [ the alliance of 15]."

Currently, the 54 political parties and organisations are waging a simultaneous movement demanding election under a non-party interim government, BNP leaders say. 

When the alliance of 15 organisations was announced, BNP standing committee member Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku was there.

At Thursday's meeting, Tuku was present but another senior leader said the whole issue was orchestrated by Aman.

Then Mirza Fakhrul said, "Who gave Aman this authority?"

Aman could not be reached over the phone despite repeated attempts.

This correspondent contacted three other standing committee members about the issues but they declined to say anything on record.

Awami League's decision to not compete for two of the recently vacated seats, rather letting its allies vie for them, is aimed at strengthening its relations with partners ahead of the 12th national election, slated for January 2024.

On the other hand, AL's decision to not give the party symbol to anyone competing in the upcoming Brahmanbaria-2 by-polls is an effort to keep the main opposition, Jatiya Party, in its fold, according to AL insiders.

AL's parliamentary board on Sunday decided to leave two seats -- Thakurgaon-3 and Bogura-4 -- for Workers Party and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD-Inu), respectively.

In the last election held in 2008, AL left Thakurgaon-3 for Workers Party, Bogura-4 for JSD-Inu, and Brahmanbaria-2 for Jatiya Party, but BNP won those seats.

As AL is trying to expand its alliance by taking pro-liberation political forces on board, the party's latest decision is to satisfy its alliance and electoral partners. The ruling party is now working on its relations with its partners, belonging to the 14-party alliance, and has already sat with them several times. It is also closely maintaining relations with Jatiya Party.

The ruling party has decided to contest for three of the six seats that remain vacant since the recent resignation of BNP lawmakers. The election of those six seats will be held on February 1.

On December 11, a day after BNP's rally in Dhaka, seven BNP MPs, one from reserved seat, tendered their resignation letters to the JS speaker as part of their party's anti-government movement. And so, six seats -- Brahmanbaria-2, Thakurgaon-3, Bogura-4, Bogura-6, Chapainawabganj-2 and Chapainawabganj-3 -- were vacated.

Awami League's decision came after Workers Party and JSD wrote letters to the ruling party to sacrifice those two seats for them.

According to insiders, as AL is trying to expand its alliance by taking pro-liberation political forces on board, the party's latest decision is to satisfy its alliance and electoral partners.

The ruling party is now working on its relations with its partners, belonging to the 14-party alliance, and has already sat with them several times. It is also closely maintaining relations with Jatiya Party, said sources.

AL took part in the 2008, 2014 and 2018 elections under the banner of the 14-party alliance, which was treated as AL's ideological alliance. Besides, Jatiya Party was an electoral partner of AL in those elections.

When AL formed the government in 2009, Jatiya Party became the main opposition in the House, while AL ignored its partners. But leaders of the allies were inducted into the government formed in 2009 and 2014, they said.

A gap started forming between partners of the 14-party alliance and Awami League. This gap has widened day by day due to AL ignoring its partners.

This friction was exposed on December 8, when AL convened a meeting with its partners. The ruling party drew heavy flak from its left-leaning allies for ignoring them while taking crucial political decisions and for starting "electioneering" for the next national polls by keeping its partners in the dark.

Leaders of the leftist parties told AL leaders that they are disappointed, as the ruling party does not give them space in the government nor give the alliance much importance.

On the other hand, relations between AL and JP have lately strained, as the former believes JP Chairman GM Quader has reached an understanding with BNP leaders about a simultaneous anti-government movement, sources said.

Things appeared to have soured when several JP leaders started talking about "government misrule" a few months ago and last month. GM Quader said his party does not belong to any alliance with AL.

Under such circumstances, the ruling party started trying to strengthen relations with its partners.

AL President Sheikh Hasina, also the prime minister, held a meeting with two top leaders of Jatiya Party, while top leaders of AL had several meetings with its left-leaning partners.

Talking to the Daily Star, a top leader of Workers Party, wishing anonymity, said, "As Awami League decided to participate in the next election under the banner of the 14-party alliance, the ruling party is trying to satisfy partners and the latest decision shows that."

"We will wage movements and participate in the election together," AL veteran leader Amir Hossain Amu, also coordinator of the 14-party alliance, told The Daily Star.

He brushed aside claims of the widening gap between AL and its partners.

A team of foreign election observers said they witnessed calm and peaceful election at different polling centres in the capital yesterday.

“We have visited a number of polling stations… and as far as the perception goes there was calm, serene and ambiance in the polling stations,” said Aariz Aftab, chief electoral officer of West Bengal.

Talking to reporters at the end of voting, he said, “....a lot of gaiety was visible. Whatever we've perceived I think it was very meticulous planning and meticulous organisation by the Bangladesh Election Commission.

“We hope that through this visit the relationship between the EC of India and EC of Bangladesh will be strengthened... this is to carry forward good and cordial relationship between the election commissions of the two countries,” Aariz Aftab added.

The observer team includes five persons from Canada, India and Nepal; of them, three were from Indian election commission. Besides, three local observers visited polling centres.

“Everyone is getting access to their polling station and is able to cast their ballot and all of the officers and officials are doing a great job in maintaining order,” said Tania Dawn Foster, an observer from Canada.

Tania Foster said she visited five centres and a number of polling booths. “Everything that I have observed to this point has demonstrated that the voters are feeling empowered and enthusiastic about being able to come and vote,” she said, reports BSS.

She said the election has been “really orderly” that the voters are “feeling empowered and enthusiastic about being able to come and vote”.

Another Indian observer, Gautom Ghosh, said, “Voting going on very spontaneously. There is complete peace and I feel everything is good till now.”

Later, during a briefing at Sonargaon Hotel, Prime Minister's International Affairs Adviser Dr Gowher Rizvi told foreign observers that 18 people were killed in violence during the parliamentary election.

Of the victims, 12 were from the Awami League, three from BNP, one from Chhatra Sena, one ansar member and one bystander, he said.