BNP nomination for Madaripur-1 on hold after protests, blockade

BNP says the decision was taken due to “unavoidable reasons”

Following protests and a road blockade, the BNP has suspended the nomination of Kamal Zaman Mollah for Madaripur-1.

The announcement came on Tuesday afternoon through a media statement signed by Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

The statement said, “Yesterday [Monday], at a media briefing, the names of party nominees for 237 parliamentary seats were announced, including Mollah for Madaripur-1 (Shibchar Upazila).

“Due to unavoidable reasons, the nomination for Madaripur-1 and the selected candidate’s name have been suspended.”

On Monday afternoon, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir unveiled the list of 237 candidates at a press briefing at Gulshan, confirming Molla’s nomination.

News of his nomination triggered protests along the Dhaka-Bhanga Expressway, where supporters of district BNP Joint Convenor Sajjad Hossain Lavlu Siddiqui set tyres ablaze, causing severe traffic congestion for nearly two hours.

The blockade was lifted after police and Army intervention, and traffic resumed after 9pm.