More than 600 collect BNP forms for reserved seats

More than 600 aspirants have collected nomination forms from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to contest the reserved women’s seats in the 13th Parliament, as the party formally launched its nomination process.

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi disclosed the figures at a press briefing held at the party’s Nayapaltan central office in Dhaka on Saturday (April 11). According to him, more than 500 forms were sold on the opening day alone, and the process of collecting and submitting forms will continue until Sunday.

“Our nomination process has started. Interested candidates are collecting forms, filling them up and submitting them with the required documents,” Rizvi said.

Later in the day, BNP Assistant Office Secretary Tarikul Islam Tenzing said the number of forms sold had crossed 600 by Saturday noon, while 78 to 79 forms had been submitted so far.

Party officials said a nomination board comprising senior leaders will evaluate the applications and finalise candidates. Rizvi stressed that the selection would follow democratic norms and the party’s traditional practices.

“We expect the process to follow democratic norms, as BNP has always done in choosing its parliamentary candidates,” he said, adding that expectations among aspirants are particularly high this time.

“This expectation is high because we have reached this stage after going through a very difficult situation for the last 16 to 17 years.

We had to fight for a long time to ensure a free and fair election. After 15 to 16 years of struggle, we now have an environment to practise democratic norms, and we must make the best use of it,” he added.

Highlighting women’s contributions to the party’s political movements, Rizvi said many female activists had faced arrests, harassment and politically motivated cases for their involvement in party activities, including online expression.

“Many women faced repression. Some were arrested late at night for expressing their views on Facebook. Those active on the streets faced severe harassment, repression and false cases. They have endured continuous suffering,” he said.

Rizvi expressed hope that women who had contributed significantly to the party’s movement and were capable of effectively raising issues in Parliament would be given priority.

On Saturday, a wide range of aspirants — including teachers, lawyers, cultural personalities, former student leaders and Mohila Dal activists — were seen collecting nomination forms at the Nayapaltan office. Among them were noted singer Kanak Chapa, Bithika Binte Hossain, wife of late Swechchhasebak Dal president Shafiqul Bari Babu, and several former lawmakers.

The nomination form is priced at Tk 2,000, and applicants must deposit Tk 50,000 as security when submitting the completed form.

The Election Commission earlier announced the schedule for the election to the reserved women’s seats.

The deadline for submitting nomination papers is April 21, while scrutiny will take place on April 22 and 23. Appeals can be filed on April 26 and will be disposed of between April 27 and 28. Symbols will be allotted on April 30, and voting is scheduled for May 12.

Based on the seat distribution, the BNP-led alliance is expected to secure 36 reserved seats, the Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance 13 seats, and independent candidates one seat.