CEC expresses confidence in fair, credible election

Staff Reporter :

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) A M M Nasir Uddin has expressed confidence that the Election Commission (EC) will be able to deliver a free, fair and credible election with the cooperation of all concerned.

He made the remarks on Monday while visiting the appeal submission booths set up in front of the Election Building in Agargaon, Dhaka, where appeals against decisions of returning officers are being received.
Speaking to journalists during the visit, the CEC said, “We are still convinced that we will be able to hold a completely fair and credible election with everyone’s cooperation.”

From Monday, the Election Commission has started accepting appeals against decisions taken by returning officers in the nomination scrutiny process for the 13th National Parliamentary Election.

To facilitate the process, the EC has set up region-wise booths in front of the Election Building.
The CEC also urged all concerned not to be anxious about the upcoming election, saying that the commission is making its utmost efforts to ensure a credible process.

After scrutiny of nomination papers, a total of 723 nomination papers were cancelled across all 300 parliamentary constituencies.

At the same time, 1,842 nomination papers were declared valid. The EC clarified that appeals can be filed not only against the rejection of nomination papers but also against the acceptance of valid candidates.

According to the Election Commission, any aggrieved candidate, bank or financial institution may file an appeal with the EC within five days of the completion of nomination scrutiny, meaning by 9 January. Appeals must be submitted in the form of a memorandum, along with one set of original documents and six sets of photocopies.
For the convenience of appeal submission, the country has been divided into 10 regions, with separate booths assigned for each region in front of the Election Building.

Candidates must submit their appeals at the designated booth for their respective region. Appeals will be accepted until 9 January, while the Election Commission will dispose of the appeals between 10 and 18 January.
The region-wise booth allocation is as follows: Rangpur region, Booth-1 (seats 1-33); Rajshahi region, Booth-2 (seats 34-72); Khulna region, Booth-3 (seats 73-108); Barishal region, Booth-4 (seats 109-129); Mymensingh region, Booth-5 (seats 130-167); Dhaka region, Booth-6 (seats 168-208); Faridpur region, Booth-7 (seats 209-223); Sylhet region, Booth-8 (seats 224-242); Cumilla region, Booth-9 (seats 243-277); and Chattogram region, Booth-10 (seats 278-300).

Appeal hearings will begin on 10 January. According to EC sources, hearings will be held daily at the Election Building auditorium, starting at 10 am.

The hearing schedule based on appeal numbers is as follows: 10 January for appeals numbered 01-70; 11 January for 71-140; 12 January for 141-210; 13 January for 211-280; 14 January for 281-350; 15 January for 351-420; 16 January for 421-490; 17 January for 491-560; and 18 January for appeal number 561 and all remaining cases.

The Election Commission reiterated that it remains committed to conducting the 13th National Parliamentary Election in a transparent, fair and credible manner.