Dhaka: For the first time, Village Police members have been called out for active election duty.

‘They know the villages better and will work alongside other law enforcement agencies,’ Election Commission Secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed said Thursday.

About 41,000 Village Police members will be on duty. Ahmed said Tk 8.22 crore would be paid to the force for its work during the polls, reports the UNB.

The secretary handed over the grants to Bangladesh Village Police Employees Union chairmanat the city’s Nirbachan Bhaban.

The next election is scheduled for December 30.

‘Culture of election’

Secretary Ahmed said polls violence was a ‘culture of election’ in the subcontinent.

‘A large section of people take part in polls in a festive mood. A few others oppose [the election] and conspire to thwart it,’ he said.

There have been reports of attacks on election rallies and campaigns, mostly of BNP candidates, across the country.

Secretary Ahmed said the commission had already sent teams to investigate incidents of pre-polls violence.

‘They will file reports after investigation and we will take steps accordingly,’ he added.