Scrutiny of nominations for Dhaka’s 20 seats to end Saturday

Papers for metropolitan and the remaining seats are to be scrutinised in separate locations

Scrutiny of nomination papers for Dhaka district’s 20 parliamentary constituencies is set to be completed on Saturday, a day before the deadline.

Nomination papers for 13 Dhaka metropolitan constituencies will be scrutinised at the returning officer’s office in Segunbagicha, while those for the remaining constituencies will be examined at the conference hall of the Election Training Institute in Agargaon.

A total of 238 nomination papers have been submitted in Dhaka’s 20 constituencies by party nominees and independent aspirants.

The deadline for submitting nomination papers was Dec 29. Scrutiny began the following day and is scheduled to continue until Jan 4.

During scrutiny, a candidate may be present along with their proposer, supporter, and lawyer, with a maximum of five people allowed.

Candidates whose nomination papers are rejected will have the right to appeal under the rules.

Those barred during scrutiny may submit appeals to the Election Commission (EC) within the stipulated timeframe.

Following appeals, the final list of candidates will be published in line with the EC’s directives.

The Representation of the People Order, 1972, clearly outlines the grounds for rejection, including loan default status, income tax irregularities, improper completion of nomination papers, and failure to meet legal eligibility requirements.

Party candidates must submit valid party endorsement, while independent candidates are required to show support from 1 percent of voters in the constituency, unless they are former members of parliament.

Returning officers verify the authenticity of the support lists through random sampling before making a decision.