Tasnim Jara calls for easier election process for independent candidates

Tasnim Jara, an independent candidate of Dhaka-9, urged the Election Commission to simplify the electoral process for independent contenders today (29 December), saying the existing requirement of securing signatures from 1% of voters is unnecessarily difficult and discriminatory.

She called the rule a major barrier to fair participation, pointing out that independent candidates must gather signatures from 1% of voters in their constituency, unlike party-backed candidates who face no such requirement.

Tasnim Jara made this statement while campaigning for signature collection in Khilgaon-Bashabo area of the capital.

Tasnim recently resigned from the National Citizen Party (NCP) and announced her decision to contest the upcoming election from the Dhaka-9 constituency as an independent candidate. Monday was the final day for submitting nomination papers, meaning she had less than two days to meet the Election Commission's requirement of submitting voter signatures along with her nomination.

Dhaka-9 has around 500,000 voters, requiring Tasnim to collect at least 5,000 valid signatures. Failure to meet the requirement would result in the rejection of her nomination, according to election rules.

Since Sunday morning, she and her supporters have been collecting signatures by setting up booths in Khilgaon and Bashabo areas. Tasnim said around 3,500 signatures were collected throughout Sunday. Additional booths were set up in Banasree's E Block from Monday morning to speed up the process.

Tasnim Jara, however, said gathering the remaining signatures within such a short timeframe is "almost impossible."

"People cannot just sign; they must also provide their voter number. Many voters do not know their voter ID number, which is slowing down the entire process," she said, adding, "Still, we are hopeful that we can collect the required signatures quickly."

The deadline for submitting nomination papers to the Election Commission is 5pm on Monday, adding pressure on independent candidates like her, Tasnim noted.

Given these challenges, she called on the authorities to make the nomination process easier for independent candidates in future elections to ensure a more level playing field.

Tasnim resigned from the NCP following the party's decision to join an alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami. She previously served as the party's senior joint member secretary.