Reserved Women's Seats: Jamaat confirms 13 candidates

Candidates have been finalised for the reserved women’s seats in the 13th Jatiya Sangsad from the 11-party electoral alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami.

Under the arrangement, eight women from Jamaat will enter Parliament, while two seats have been allocated to the National Citizen Party (NCP).

One nominee each has been selected from Jatiya Ganatantrik Party and Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis, alongside one representative from the family of a July martyr.

The 11-party alliance secured 77 constituencies in the parliamentary elections held on 12 February, entitling it to 13 of the 50 reserved seats for women.

Of the remaining seats, 36 have been allocated to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which announced its nominees earlier on Monday, followed shortly by the alliance’s list.

According to sources within Jamaat’s women’s wing, those instructed to collect nomination papers include Nurunnisa Siddika, Marzia Begum, Sabikun Nahar Munni, Mahfuza Siddika, Najmun Nahar Neelu, Sajeda Samad, Mardia Momtaz, Mahmuda Alam Mitu, Monira Sharmin, Tasmia Prodhan, Samsun Nahar, Mahbuba Hakim and Rokeya Begum.

The nominees are expected to submit their papers at the Election Commission office in Agargaon, Dhaka, on Tuesday.

Those set to represent Jamaat in Parliament include Nurunnisa Siddika, assistant secretary Marzia Begum, law and human rights secretary Sabikun Nahar Munni, Daffodil International University lecturer Mardia Momtaz, Najmun Nahar Neelu, Sylhet-based leader Mahfuza Siddika, Bogura leader and former upazila women vice-chairman Sajeda Samad, and Khulna city unit secretary Samsun Nahar.

The two NCP nominees are Monira Sharmin, convener of the party’s women’s platform “Jatiya Nari Shakti”, and its member secretary Mahmuda Alam Mitu.

Tasmia Prodhan, chairman of JAGPA, and Mahbuba Hakim of Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis have also been nominated. Party sources said Hakim is a niece of the party’s ameer, Mamunul Haque.

In addition, Rokeya Begum, mother of a child killed during the July events, has been nominated by the alliance for a parliamentary seat.