National polls: Candidacy withdrawal deadline ends, electoral symbols to be allotted tomorrow
The final number of contestants will be known after the withdrawal deadline ends today
The deadline for withdrawing candidacy in the upcoming national election expires today (20 January), while returning officers will allot electoral symbols to candidates tomorrow.
According to the election schedule, election campaigning will formally begin on 22 January and continue until 7:30am on 10 February.
Voting for the 13th national parliamentary election will take place on 12 February, from 7:30am to 4:30pm.
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A total of 2,568 nomination papers were submitted to contest the election. Of these, returning officers initially rejected 723 nominations during scrutiny. Candidates were given the opportunity to appeal those decisions to the Election Commission (EC), during which 645 appeals were filed.
Following appeal hearings, the EC restored the candidacy of 417 aspirants, while six candidates – whose nominations were initially deemed valid – lost their eligibility after appeal proceedings. The final number of contestants will be known after the withdrawal deadline ends today.
The election schedule was announced on 11 December. The deadline for submitting nomination papers was 29 December, while the appeal process concluded yesterday.
EC officials said that if any party has fielded multiple candidates in the same constituency and more than one survived scrutiny, the party must inform the returning officer by today which candidate will remain in the race. Independent candidates seeking to withdraw must also do so.
Election Commissioner Anwarul Islam Sarker yesterday said that the commission is operating without pressure.
"Everyone wants a good election, and so does the commission," he told journalists at his office in the EC headquarters in the capital's Agargaon.
He further said the appeal hearings indicated the prospect of a competitive election.
"The way candidates presented their arguments during hearings gives us confidence that they will maintain that spirit in the field as well," he added.
