EC cancels deal with Computer Council for NID service

The Election Commission (EC) has terminated its contract with the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) for National Identification (NID) data verification services due to a breach of terms.

Along with severing ties, the organisation has been instructed to settle all outstanding dues to the EC within 15 days of receiving the notice.

ASM Humayun Kabir, director general of the National Identity Registration Wing at the EC, revealed the information while talking to reporters at Nirbachan Bhaban in Dhaka on Sunday.

He also explained that 183 government and private institutions are currently utilising NID data verification services, with the BCC being one of the key stakeholders.

On October 4, 2022, EC and BCC have signed a bilateral agreement and it prohibited the BCC from transferring, exchanging, selling, or providing NID data to any third party. But the BCC violated these terms.

On September 3, the EC sought clarification from the BCC regarding the breach, but the response provided was unsatisfactory.

The BCC was given a three-day deadline starting from October 6 to clarify the situation, yet the explanation offered was still deemed inadequate.

Besides, the contract stipulated that failure to pay the agreed fees within the specified timeframe would result in the cancellation of the agreement. The EC, therefore, has decided to terminate the contract with the BCC and sever the API connection.