The two-day time for collecting and submitting nomination papers to get BNP ticket for the December 29 parliamentary election ended yesterday amid huge enthusiasm of aspirant leaders and their supporters.
Around 3,186 forms were sold from the party headquarters and city office at Naya Paltan in the last two days for 263 parliamentary constituencies in six divisions. Party sources said 2,063 nomination seekers have submitted their forms to the BNP central and city offices.
Nomination forms for five constituencies were bought on behalf of party Chairperson Khaleda Zia and two on behalf of Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain.
Party men engaged in selling nomination forms told reporters that Khaleda submitted forms for Bogra-6 and Dinajpur-3. She had also bought forms for Feni-1, Comilla-6 and Bogra-7.
Many convicted and arrested leaders and their relatives as well as controversial persons submitted nomination forms yesterday to get party ticket.
The BNP parliamentary board headed by Chairperson Khaleda Zia will interview the aspirants from 10:00am today at Khaleda’s Gulshan office to select the party nominees.
Representatives submitted the forms for convicted BNP leaders Nazmul Huda, Mirza Abbas and Salahuddin Ahmed and detained Nasiruddin Ahmed Pintu.
Afroza Abbas, wife of Mirza Abbas, Sabera Aman, wife of Aman Ullah Aman, Antara Huda, daughter of Nazmul Huda, and a sister of fugitive convict M Morshed Khan also submitted nomination forms to contest the polls.
Controversial teachers’ leader Selim Bhuiyan and Justice Faisal Mahmud Faizee are also vying for party ticket.
Many fresh faces and a few senior leaders of BNP are trying to get party nomination in the 15 seats in the capital as the party is facing a severe crisis of candidates.
Apart from them, BNP leaders including standing committee members, former ministers and lawmakers, leaders known as reformists, former student leaders, businessmen, former bureaucrats, lawyers and woman leaders collected and submitted nomination forms.
Meanwhile, Khandaker Delwar yesterday held a crucial meeting with Dhaka city Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka to discuss strategies for contesting the general election in the city constituencies.
The BNP earned about Tk 4.43 crore from the sale and submission of nomination papers.
Sources said leaders of Islami Oikya Jote and Khelafat Majlish, two of the four-party alliance, handed over the lists of their nomination seekers to Khaleda.
Thousands of supporters of the nomination hopefuls gathered in front of the party office and chanted slogans in favour of their leaders.
Supporters of the "reformist" leaders faced the wrath of BNP leaders and activists present at the party office.
Sources at the BNP central and city offices said highest 1,800 nomination papers were sold just for the constituencies in Dhaka division while 1,200 of them were submitted; the lowest number of forms sold was 55 in Sylhet division, 40 of which were submitted.
Above 500 nomination papers were sold for Chittagong division, of which 275 were submitted; for Rajshahi 370 nomination papers were sold while more than 276 were submitted; for Barisal about 300 forms were sold and about 150 were submitted while 155 forms were sold for Khulna division and 128 were submitted.
About 55 nomination hopefuls submitted forms against the 15 parliamentary constituencies in Dhaka division.
Sadeque Hossain Khoka submitted his nomination form for Dhaka-6 constituency. Former Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) president Habibunnabi Khan Sohel and former Dhaka city unit general secretary of BNP Abdus Salam submitted their forms for Dhaka-8 seat.
Barrister Nasiruddin Asim, BNP chairperson’s counsel and former JCD leader, filed his nomination forms for Dhaka-11 and 12.
Of the former lawmakers elected in the 2001 election, Mosaddek Ali Falu and Maj (retd) Kamrul Islam did not buy party nomination forms.
Khandaker Mahbubuddin Ahmad and SA Khaleque are also in the race to secure party nomination.
Party standing committee member Chowdhury Tanbir Ahmed Siddiky submitted forms for Dhaka-7 and chairperson’s adviser Brig Gen (retd) ASM Hannan Shah for Dhaka-17. They have also sought party nomination from their own constituencies in Gazipur.
City corporation councillors Abdul Quaiyum, Kazi Abul Bashar, Kazi Hazrat Ali, Bazlul Basit Anju, Abu Sayeed Bepari and Shamim Parvez, among others, submitted forms for getting party ticket.
Party sources said no forms were for 37 seats, which have been kept for the components of the four-party alliance.
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