Deadline for nominations to reserved women’s seats ends today

The deadline for submitting nomination papers for the 50 reserved women’s seats in the 13th Jatiya Sangsad ends today (April 21).

According to the schedule announced by the Election Commission (EC), interested candidates must submit their nomination papers by this afternoon. With the final day underway, a large turnout of aspirants and heightened activity have been observed at the EC office.

EC Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the 50 reserved seats have been allocated based on the proportional representation of parties in the general seats of parliament.

Under the allocation, the BNP-led alliance has received 36 seats, Jamaat-e-Islami and its 11-party alliance 13 seats, and the independent bloc one seat.

The BNP finalised its list of 36 female candidates by Monday afternoon. Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami and its allies have also reportedly completed their list of 13 candidates.

According to EC data, a total of 464 prospective candidates have so far collected nomination forms against the 50 seats.

At least five prominent candidates—Sanjida Islam Tuli, Nilofar Chowdhury Moni, Mahbuba Rahman, Anna Minz and Nipun Roy Chowdhury—have already submitted their nomination papers.

As per the schedule, scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on April 22 and 23. Appeals against the scrutiny decisions can be filed on April 26, with hearings scheduled for April 27 and 28.

The deadline for withdrawal of candidature is April 29, while election symbols will be allotted on April 30. If necessary, voting will be held on May 12.

EC officials noted that political parties usually nominate candidates equal to their allocated seats for reserved positions. As a result, if only one candidate remains for a seat after the withdrawal deadline, they may be declared elected unopposed. However, if multiple candidates remain for any seat, members of parliament will vote to elect the winner.