Staff Correspondent
The Election Commission on Thursday asked the returning officers to accept nominations, cancelled earlier, of the candidates who obtained High Court orders for them to contest the December 29 parliamentary polls.
The chief election commissioner, ATM Shamsul Huda, expressing disappointment about the inclusion of fresh candidates, said, ‘We will do it even if someone comes with such orders the day before December 29.’
When asked whether the commission would inform the court of its limitations or file any appeals, he said, ‘The commission had no energy and patience to file appeals. We will do as the court orders us to, even if it is even on the day before the elections.’
He said the commission had adequate manpower to work day and night till the day before the elections.
Asked if it was possible to change the ballot papers and print them in time, he said, ‘If the High Court thinks we can print ballot papers after correction even the day before elections, we need to do it.’ The commission is now printing about 1 crore ballot papers a day.
‘As the court thinks we are able to do [accept nomination papers and hold elections for the constituencies], we will do it. We are superhuman and have supernatural power,’ said Shamsul, a former secretary to the government.
Till Thursday evening, the commission received court orders validating candidatures of 17 aspirants.
As three Awami League aspirants and one Jatiya Party aspirant obtained court orders for them to contest the polls and the parties nominated them as candidates, there are now 17 constituencies where both the parties have fielded candidates as rivals.
The Election Commission on Wednesday expressed its willingness to move court for further hearing in the cases it lost after the candidates had challenged the commission decisions with the High Court and the Appellate Division.
Before the commission had made public its position on the latest court orders, the Awami League’s election steering committee coordinator, HT Imam, met the chief election commissioner and told reporters he had received assurance in this regard.
In the case of the Awami League, Imam named three such candidates — Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir for Chandpur 1, Ataur Rahman for Moulvibazar 2 and Motiur Rahman for Mymensingh 4 constituencies. Rawshan Ershad is the candidate of the Awami League-led alliance for Mymensingh 4.
Asked whether there will be any problem with the alliance as candidates will need to face rivals within the alliance, Imam said there would not be any problem.
Habibur Rahman Molllah, the Awami League aspirant for Dhaka 5, whose nomination was cancelled, won the legal battle although the party had conceded the constituency to Jatiya Party leader Syed Abu Hossain Babla.
The BNP lost two of its candidates for the Sirajganj 5 constituency when the returning officer cancelled the nomination of both retired major Manzur Kader and Golam Mawla Bablu. Both have obtained court orders, but Kader will remain the BNP candidate as he is the first choice of the party.
Two other BNP candidates — Abdul Gafur Bhuiyan for Comilla 10 and Kabir Ahmed Bhuiyan for Lakshmipur 2 who were the party’s first choice — have also won legal battle. The BNP-led alliance has already had Mobashwer Alam Bhuiyan for Comilla 10 and Abul Khayer Bhuiyan for Lakshmipur 2.
The court order ensured the BNP’s candidate Abdus Sobhan for the Barisal 1 constituency. There was no other candidate of the BNP and its allies but for Sobhan for the constituency.
Shahidul Alam Talukder of the BNP, an aspirant for the Patuakhali 2 constituency, obtained a court order for him to contest the polls. As the nomination of Talukder was cancelled, AK Faruk won the party nomination as the second choice of the party and started electioneering.
The others who obtained court orders include Jatiya Party leader Kazi Zafar Ahmed for Comilla 11, Baran Kumar Biswas (independent) for Satkhira 3, Sachindra Lal Dey (independent) for Chittagong 3, Siddiqur Rahman (independent) for Bhola 3, Shahidul Islam (independent) for Narsingdi 5 and Zafar Ahmed Chowedhury (independent) for Chittagong 14.
The Appellate Division on Thursday also ordered the commission to accept the candidature of former BNP state minister Lutfozzaman Babar, contesting independently for Netrakana 4 and Awami League aspirant Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir for Chandpur 1.
The Appellate Division chamber judge, Justice M Joynul Abedin, passed the orders after hearing separate petitions filed by the aspirants against the High Court orders which upheld the commission’s decision cancelling their candidatures.
The chamber judge has so far allowed three candidates, earlier sentenced to more than two years’ imprisonment in separate criminal cases, to contest the forthcoming poll after the withdrawal of the state of emergency.
The High Court bench of Justice Zinat Ara and Justice AKM Abdul Hakim Thursday morning rejected Babar’s petition upholding the commission’s decision which disqualified him from contesting the polls as he was on October 30, 2007 jailed for 10 years in an arms case.
Moving Babar’s petition with the chamber judge, his counsel Rafique-ul Huq argued Babar’s conviction was not for an offence involving ‘moral turpitude,’ which bars a person from contesting elections.
Mohiuddin’s counsel Rokanuddin Mahmud later moved the Appellate Division chamber on the same ground and sought stay on the orders passed by the High Court upholding the commission’s rejection of his nomination.
The High Court bench of Justice Md Imman Ali and Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam on December 15 rejected Mohiuddin’s petition which challenged the commission’s decision disqualifying him from contesting the elections as he was on July 26, 2007 jailed for 13 years in a corruption case.
The Appellate Division chamber judge on Wednesday did not pass any order on Mohiuddin’s petition which sought stay on the High Court order, but posted for Thursday a full-court hearing.
When Mohiuddin’s petition came up for hearing in the morning, a three-member Appellate Division bench, led by the chief justice, MM Ruhul Amin, dropped it for hearing for want of necessary documents.
According to the commission before the inclusion of fresh candidates validated by court, 1,397 candidates are contesting the polls on party tickets and 141 independently.
Two hundred and fifty-nine of them belong to the Awami League although 266 candidates, including candidates of the allies, are contesting the polls with the symbol of boat.
Two hundred and fifty-four belong to the BNP while 263 contestants, including the candidates of allies, are in the race with the symbol of paddy sheaf. Jatiya Party candidates are running for 46 constituencies and Jamaat candidates for 39.
Courtesy: newagebd.com
