'Your vote has already been cast': A Dhaka-13 voter's shock at the polls

Like every eager young voter, there I was in my relaxed baggy fit, standing in line to cast my ballot in the 13th national election in my constituency -- Dhaka-13 -- this afternoon.

Amid what appeared to be a healthy voter turnout, I was told the dreaded words no voter should ever hear: “Your vote has already been cast.” A polling agent informed me after I confidently provided my voting serial number -- obtained through the Smart Election BD app.

Visibly flustered, the agent consulted three others in the room on the third floor of my voting centre -- Lalmatia Government Women’s College in Mohammadpur. They checked their lists repeatedly, scratched their heads, and confirmed the same thing that my vote had already been cast by someone else.

According to them, the individual had presented identical proof of identity and even bore a close resemblance to the photograph on my National ID (NID), raising no immediate red flags.

At a loss, one of the agents called the presiding officer. He said he could not allow me to cast another vote, even if my identity checked out and I was indeed the person assigned that serial number.

Unwilling to simply walk away, I asked what options were available. The presiding officer, however, could not offer a solution.

Disappointed, I phoned a colleague, who informed me that there was a provision for a tendered ballot -- a consolation ballot issued in such circumstances, though one that would not be counted. The process mirrors the usual voting experience -- signing the papers, stamping the ballot, folding it. But instead of placing it in the ballot box, the ballot is handed to the presiding officer, who seals it in a brown envelope and keeps it separately.

The presiding officer, as puzzled as I was, explained that while I could cast a tendered ballot, it would serve only as a record of the complaint and would not be included in the final count.

I was not alone in facing such a predicament at the centre. A female voter encountered the same issue.

Meanwhile, a male voter approached the presiding officer to complain that despite being assigned to the same centre with a valid serial number -- obtained through the app -- his name did not appear on the lists. His two brothers, voters in the same constituency, had cast their ballots without issue. But his serial number corresponded to someone else’s name. The presiding officer photographed his NID but could offer little beyond regret.