By-polls in 5 BNP MPs' vacant seats on 1 Feb

The Election Commission (EC) has announced 1 February as the date for by-polls to the parliamentary seats that fell vacant following the recent resignation of the BNP lawmakers.

EC Secretary Jahangir Alam made the disclosure while speaking with reporters following a meeting of the commission held in Dhaka on Sunday.

The five constituencies where the by-polls will take place are – Thakurgaon-3, Bogura-4, Bogura-6, Chapainawabganj-2, and Brahmanbaria-2.

As per the election schedule, the deadline for nomination submission is 5 January, while the date for scrutiny of nomination papers is 8 January and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is 15 January.

Voting will be held in EVMs from 8:30am to 4:30pm without any break, the EC secretary told the reporters. 

On 10 December, all seven BNP lawmakers announced that they would resign from parliament.

The move came as part of the party's anti-government movement with a 10-point demand that includes the dissolution of parliament.

Five of the seven BNP MPs -- Md Zahidur Rahman of Thakurgaon-3; Md Mosharof Hosen of Bogura-4; Gulam Mohammad Siraj of Bogura-6; Md Aminul Islam of Chapainawabganj-2; and Rumeen Farhana, MP from a seat reserved for women -- submitted their resignations in-person to JS Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury the next day.

However, the resignation letter from Chapainawabganj-3 MP Harunur Rashid, who is currently abroad, was not accepted. 

He was asked to submit his resignation again with a proper signature. 

Besides, Brahmanbaria-2 MP Abdus Sattar Bhuiyan could not attend his colleagues due to illness.