The six-point reform proposal submitted by the former CEC to the president remains shelved for the last seven months. The proposals include the all-important one -- an independent secretariat for the commission.

The EC, which on numerous occasions had faced difficulties in conducting polls freely due to interference from the executive, drew up the reform proposals in last May.

But recently, the government has dismissed the possibility of bringing about any reforms in the electoral system. Law Minister Moudud Ahmed last month made it clear again that the government has no plans for reforms.

The incumbent CEC MA Aziz has refused to pursue the reform proposals placed by his predecessor and declared that he himself would submit some reform proposals. But he has not discussed anything about his intended move for reforms at any of EC meetings, nor with the other two election commissioners though more than seven months have gone since the announcement.

It has rather become uncertain whether he will send any reform proposal to the government at all, when the government has already rejected outright the idea of bringing reforms in the electoral system, sources at the EC said.

"We don't know anything about the CEC's reform proposals, as he never discussed the issue with us," Election Commissioner AK Mohammad Ali told The Daily Star.

MA Syed submitted the six-point reform proposal on May 21, his last workday as the CEC. Before placing the proposals to the president, he told journalists, "If the Election Commission is not allowed an independent secretariat with financial autonomy, it would not be possible for it in future to conduct elections freely and fairly."

The proposals also include introduction of electronic voting machines and electronic voter roll, army deployment in the city corporation and municipality polls, and introduction of electoral enquiry committees for the local government polls.

Syed who oversaw the last parliamentary election and a large number elections to local government bodies and vacant parliamentary constituencies in his tenure, has acknowledged that he did not always get all-out co-operation from the secretariat and the government in conducting polls in last five years.

A day after assuming office, CEC MA Aziz on May 24 said he too favours an independent EC secretariat.

"I don't know how far the government controls or influences the Election Commission secretariat," he said, replying to a query on reported influence of the government on the EC secretariat. "But I believe it should be independent," the CEC continued.

About reforms, Aziz said reforms are a must to make the rules up-to-date. "Reform is an ongoing process. There are no bindings that rules cannot be amended," he said.

Later he said he would immediately send a set of reform proposals to the government. Those would include, among others, an independent secretariat and an increase in the election expenditure.