A total of 5,600 postal ballots sent to expatriate voters in Malaysia and Italy have been returned to the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) because of incorrect or fake registered addresses. Of these, 1,600 ballots came from Italy and 4,000 from Malaysia. Election Commissioner Abul Fazl Sanaullah disclosed the information on Monday, January 19, during a training session for presiding officers assigned to oversee postal ballot counting. The returned ballots have cost the state approximately 3.92 million taka.

Sanaullah explained that the ballots could not be delivered as the expatriates’ correct addresses were unavailable. He emphasized that postal ballots are secure and cannot be manipulated, citing the use of face detection technology to prevent one person from voting on behalf of another. He also dismissed misleading information circulating on social media about postal ballot fraud.

According to the commissioner, each expatriate postal ballot costs the state 700 taka, and 39 ballot marks were found folded within the papers.