EC makes SSC certificates mandatory for voter registration database uploads

The Election Commission (EC) has made it mandatory to
attach SSC or equivalent certificates to the database for applicants with
secondary or higher educational qualifications during voter registration.
The directive was issued in a
notice signed by Md Saiful Islam, director (operations) of the National
Identity (NID) Registration Wing, from the EC Secretariat today (29 April).
According to the notice, applicants
must submit Form-2, Form-3, special information forms (where applicable), birth
certificates, SSC or equivalent certificates (where applicable), passports and
signed proof copies during voter registration.
These documents are particularly crucial for verifying
dates of birth in cases of national identity card corrections.
However, the EC observed that in
many recent cases, despite applicants having secondary or higher
qualifications, local election offices at the upazila or thana level failed to
upload SSC or equivalent certificates to the database.
This has led to complications
during later corrections and difficulties for officials in making accurate
decisions.
In some instances, applicants have
even denied their educational qualifications, creating further complications.
To address these issues, the EC
issued three directives.
First, SSC or equivalent certificates,
including date of birth, must be mandatorily attached to the database if the
applicant has passed secondary level or above.
Second, even if applicants hold
higher qualifications; such as HSC, undergraduate, postgraduate, MPhil or PhD,
their SSC or equivalent certificates must still be uploaded.
Additionally, hard copies of the
highest educational certificates and related documents must be preserved.
Third, senior district, district
and regional election officers have been instructed to ensure compliance
through regular office inspections and sample-based monitoring.
















