Contradicting him, another former CEC Justice Abdur Rouf advocated for the neutrality of the election process instead of looking for neutral persons.

The two former CECs gave their opinions at a public lecture titled "Democratic processes, national elections and civil society initiatives: Indian experience" organised by Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) at Brac Centre in the capital.

Dr Jayaprakash Narayan, a civil society leader from India, shared his experiences about the civil society initiatives in Indian elections.

Speakers at the lecture also favoured strengthening of the EC and bringing in political reforms to make the upcoming election free and fair.

Noting that all governments want to influence the EC, Abu Hena said the neutrality of the EC is as important as placing the right persons in right positions for a fair poll.

"Recent debates are the outcome of not placing the right person in the right places," he said.

He pointed to the tendency of sitting governments, "who always try to gain in the election by satisfying the bureaucrats and administration", for corrupting the administration.

Justice Rouf said, "Since the CEC is a citizen and casts his vote to some party, attempts would be in vain to find a neutral person. Rather, it is important to bring in neutrality in the election process."

He suggested increasing the number of polling booths and double counting of the cast votes. He also underscored the need for a fair voter list.

Dr Jayaprakash, national coordinator of Lok Satta and the Voteindia movements--a civil society initiative and people's movement for wide-ranging governance and political reforms, emphasised the civil society initiatives for a fair election.

Among the non-elected bodies, the Supreme Court and EC are the most powerful and most credible organisations in India, he said, adding that this is very important for fair polls.

Describing the socio-cultural aspects of the subcontinent as homogenous, Jayaprakash pointed out some drawbacks of the election process that include flawed electoral rolls, polling irregularities, unaccounted and illegitimate use of money power, rampant criminalisation and autocratic political parties.

In the face of civil society initiatives, India has made some achievements in disclosure of candidate details, political funding reform law, changes in the Rajya Sabha election, strong anti-defection provisions, electronic voting machines and improvement in voter registration, he said.

Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, executive director of CPD, in his introductory speech explained the civil society moves in Bangladesh with a view to preparing a vision paper for the country.

"We need to change the current composition of the Election Commission to generate public confidence in the upcoming election," he said.

He also emphasised preparation of a fair voter list, depoliticisation of the administration and political reforms for a fair poll, noting that the citizens' committee has already placed a 37-point draft on electoral and political reforms.

The CPD organised the lecture in association with SUPRO, BROTEE, FEMA, Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association (BNWLA), Centre for Development Communication (CDC), Democracywatch and Steps Towards Development.

CPD Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan chaired the session.

Among politicians, ASHK Sadeque, Lt Gen (retd) Nooruddin Khan and GM Quader were present at the lecture, while Prof Muzaffer Ahmad, Khan Sarwar Murshid, Dr Anisuzzaman, Dr Zafarullah Chowdhury, Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, Taleya Rehman, Ranjan Karmakar and Muhammad Jahangir participated in the open discussion besides diplomats and other civil society members.