Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and several members of her family will not be able to cast their votes in the 13th national parliamentary election, the Election Commission (EC) said on Wednesday.

Speaking to journalists at the EC Secretariat in Agargaon, Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the National Identity (NID) cards of Sheikh Hasina and multiple family members are currently locked, preventing them from participating in the election.

Those whose NID is locked cannot vote from abroad, he added.

Akhtar Ahmed explained that Bangladeshi citizens living overseas must register online using their NID number to be eligible to vote. Passports alone cannot be used for registration; an active NID is mandatory. Individuals with locked NIDs cannot register online and, therefore, cannot vote from abroad. Only those who successfully register with their NID will be eligible to cast their votes.

In the upcoming parliamentary election, voting will take place both in-country and abroad. Expatriates will register online, and a system is being developed for this purpose, he said.

In April, under the direction of EC NID Directorate General ASM Humayun Kabir, Sheikh Hasina and ten members of her family had their NIDs locked. The list includes Sheikh Rehana, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Saima Wazed Putul, Shahin Siddique, Bushra Siddique, Tulip Rizwana Siddique, Azmina Siddique, Radwan Mujib Siddique, and Tarique Ahmed Siddique.

According to the EC, a locked NID means the information associated with it cannot be verified, corrected, or modified, and the NID cannot be used for registration purposes.

However, sources within the EC clarified that a locked NID does not strip an individual of citizenship or voting rights. The names of voters remain on the electoral roll despite the lock. Sheikh Hasina, being abroad, cannot register online using her locked NID and thus will not be able to vote. Had she been in the country, she could have voted despite her NID being locked.