BNP’s election nominees named in hundreds of cases

Jubo Dal President Saiful Islam Nirob has been nominated as a candidate from the BNP for the Dhaka-12 seat despite being named in 267 cases.

Anwaruzzaman, another BNP leader named in 72 cases, has been approved by the party for the same seat.

In addition to these two, BNP leader Mirza Abbas, Abdus Salam, Habibur Rashid, Nasir Uddin Ahmed Ashim, GM Shamsul Haque, Atiqul Islam Matin, Md Aminul Haque, Munshi Bazlul Basid Anju, SM Asaduzzaman Ripon, Mohammed Ahsan Ullah Hasan and SM Jahangir have got been approved to run in the polls despite being named in more than 100 cases.

On the other hand, seven BNP aspirants including Mirza Abbas’s wife Afroza Abbas have had their applications their nominations rejected due to loan default.

Returning Officer KM Ali Azam announced on Sunday that the nomination of Saiful Alam Nirob was legal.

“The Jubo Dal leader has been named in several cases but there is no allegation of loan default against him. All the other information provided in the nomination form is correct,” he said.

Md Nabi Ullah, the BNP aspirant for the Dhaka-5 seat, is in a similar situation. He was named in 121 cases, the authorities said during the nomination scrutiny, but he is not a loan defaulter.

BNP Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas has been approved to run for the Dhaka-8 seat despite 42 cases filed against him. Workers Party head Rashed Khan Menon is contesting from the same seat.

Joint-Secretary General of Dhaka Metropolitan South BNP Habibur Rashid is contesting from Dhaka-9 and is named in 80 cases.

All three candidates who submitted nominations with confirmation letters from the BNP for the Dhaka-10 seat have been approved by election officials. Nasir Uddin Ahmed Ashim is named in a series of cases but the other two candidates -- Rabiul Alam and Abdul Mannan have not been named in any case.

Both of the BNP aspirants for Dhaka-11 have been accepted as legal nominees. Among them, AGM Shamsul Haque is named in 22 cases but there is no case filed against Shamim Ara Begum.

All three of BNP aspirants for the Dhaka-13 seat have received the approval to compete in the election. Abdus Salam, member of the advisory committee to the BNP chairperson, is named in 17 cases as Atiqul Islam Matin, another aspirant, has 15 cases against him. Another legal contestant for the same seat is Ataur Rahman Dhali.

General Secretary of the Dhaka Metropolitan North Awami League Md Sadek Khan is contesting as a nominee from the same constituency.

BNP leaders Md Aminul Haque and Munshi Bazlul Basid Anju, named in six and 11 cases respectively, have been allowed to contest the election from Dhaka-14 seat.

Jamaat-e Islami Secretary General Dr Shafiqur Rahman is named in 33 cases and BNP International Affairs Secretary SM Asaduzzaman Ripon in 10 cases. Both of their nominations have been accepted for the Dhaka-15 seat.

The BNP nominee for Dhaka-16, Mohammed Ahsan Ullah, is named in 33 cases.

SM Jahangir, an aspirant for the constituency of Dhaka-18, has been accepted with 138 cases filed against him. Another nomination seeker, ANH Akhter Hossain, is not named in any case.

BNP candidates for Dhaka-17 seat Farhad Halim and Ruhul Alam Chowdhury are not named in any case.

The returning officer has approved the nominations of both Abdul Quader Khan and Akbar Hossain Pathan alias Farook, as Awami League aspirants for the same seat. Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad’s nomination was also accepted.

“Those parties who have issued confirmations to more than one candidate for a single seat should sent us a final list to follow in case any of the aspirants do not withdraw their candidacy,” said Returning Officer KM Ali Azam told reporters after scrutinising the nominations

“We’ll announce the names of single candidates for a seat following the final list provided by the relevant party before Dec 9.”