Election Commission logs 469 appeals over rejected nominations in four days

EC receives 174 more appeals on fourth day of filing

The Election Commission (EC) has received 174 more appeals against returning officers’ decisions on nomination papers for the national election, taking the total to 469 in four days.

EC spokesperson Ruhul Amin Mallik disclosed the information on Thursday.

He said 164 appeals were filed against the rejection of nomination papers, while 10 challenged decisions to accept nominations.

More than 2,500 nomination papers were submitted by independent and party candidates to contest the election.

After scrutiny between Dec 30 and Jan 4, returning officers rejected 723 nominations, leaving 1,842 candidates with valid papers.

The process of filing appeals began on Monday.

On the first day, 42 appeals were lodged, followed by 122 on Tuesday and 131 on Wednesday.

With Thursday’s filings, the total number of appeals received in four days reached 469.

According to the election schedule, appeals can be filed until Jan 9.

The EC will hear and dispose of appeals between Jan 10 and Jan 18.

The deadline for the withdrawal of candidacies is Jan 20.

Returning officers will publish the final list of candidates and allocate electoral symbols on Jan 21.

Election campaigning will begin on Jan 22 and continue until 7:30am on Feb 10, with voting scheduled for Feb 12.