Article 120 Staff of the Election Commission
Staff of Election Commission
An independent Commission is only as strong as the officers who carry out its orders. This Article creates a duty on the executive to supply them when asked.
Ahead of a general election or a revision of the voter list, the Commission works out how many officers it needs, from data entry operators and registration officers to returning and presiding officers for each district and polling centre in the country.
The Commission sends a formal request to the President, which in practice means the government and its ministries, to make the required staff available. Article 120 says the President shall provide them when requested, so supplying staff is a constitutional duty and not a favour.
Civil servants, teachers and other public employees are then assigned to election work for the period needed. While doing it they act under the Commission's instructions rather than their usual line managers, and the Commission can seek action against officers who disobey its directions.
In plain English
How Article 120 works
Article 120 makes sure the Election Commission has people to do its work. When the Commission asks, the President must provide the staff it needs to carry out its functions under Part VII. The Article is short, but it matters because a commission without officers cannot prepare voter lists or run thousands of polling stations. In practice the Commission now has its own Secretariat established by law, and on election days it also relies on officers drawn from across the government, who work under its direction while performing election duties.
In practice
Parliament later created a separate Election Commission Secretariat by statute, so the Commission now has its own permanent staff and is less dependent on ministries. For general elections, however, it still draws hundreds of thousands of temporary polling officials from the public service, and deputy commissioners have often served as returning officers. Debate continues over whether administrative officers on election duty are sufficiently insulated from the government of the day. Article 126 reinforces this Article by obliging all executive authorities to assist the Commission.
The text
What Article 120 says
120. The President shall, when so requested by the Election Commission, make available to it such staff as may be necessary for the discharge of its functions under this Part.
English text as published on the official Laws of Bangladesh website. The Bangla text is authoritative (Article 153). Where a court has changed the position, the status note above explains it.
Connected provisions
Related articles
Questions
Article 120: frequently asked questions
Who provides staff to the Election Commission?
The President must make staff available when the Election Commission asks for it, under Article 120. The Commission also has its own Secretariat created by an Act of Parliament, and borrows government officers for polling duties during elections.
Do government officers on election duty follow ministry or Commission instructions?
While they perform election functions they work under the Commission's direction. Article 126 makes it the duty of all executive authorities to assist the Commission, and election laws allow it to seek disciplinary action against officers who fail in their duties.
Sources
This guide explains the Constitution for general understanding. It is not legal advice. Constitutional reform proposals under discussion in 2026 are described as proposals until enacted.
Constitutional and writ practice
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