BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman, who contested the 13th National Parliamentary Election from Dhaka-17 and Bogra-6, has decided to vacate the Bogra-6 constituency.
The BNP chief formally sent a letter to the Election Commission (EC) regarding his decision.
Senior Secretary of the EC, Akhtar Ahmed, confirmed the matter on Monday, saying, “We have received a letter from BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman relinquishing the Bogra-6 seat. The process to declare the seat vacant through a gazette notification is now underway.”
Under Section 19(1)(Kha) of the Representation of the People Order (RPO), a candidate may contest elections from up to three constituencies. Section 19(2) mandates that if a candidate wins more than one seat, they must inform the EC in writing within 30 days of the gazette notification which seat they wish to retain. If no choice is communicated, the EC may retain one seat and declare the others vacant.
In the February 12 election, Tarique won Dhaka-17 with 72,699 votes, defeating Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami candidate SM Khaliduzzaman, who received 68,300 votes—a margin of 4,399 votes. In Bogra-6, he secured a victory with 216,284 votes, defeating Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Abidur Rahman Sohel, who received 97,626 votes.
As per RPO regulations, a by-election must be held within 90 days if a seat is declared vacant. Consequently, the EC will conduct the general election for Sherpur-3 and a by-election for Bogra-6.
Elections for 299 constituencies were held on February 12. Polling in Sherpur-3 had been postponed due to the death of a valid candidate and will now follow a revised schedule. Additionally, results for Chittagong-2 and Chittagong-4 have not yet been published due to legal complications. Out of the 297 declared constituencies, the BNP secured 209 seats.