In the 2024 election affidavit, the surge in income among Awami League candidates has set a new record, surpassing all previous figures.
According to an analysis conducted by Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (SHUJAN), the disparity between the income of Awami League candidates and their counterparts from other parties has reached an unprecedented 559%.
The information was revealed in their presentation at a press conference held on the initiative by SHUJAN at 11am on Thursday through the online platform Zoom.
SHUJAN presented a comparative analysis of the average income of Awami League candidates and other candidates from 2008 to 2024, highlighting a significant and escalating difference over the years.
The NGO conducted this analysis based on data from candidates participating in the 12th national parliamentary election.
Dilip Kumar Sarkar, the keynote speaker and convener of the organization, pointed out that while the average wealth of Awami League candidates saw an increase in 2018, the gap between ruling party candidates and those from other parties narrowed slightly, with the difference standing at 61%.
Among the candidates, 282 (14.50%) have wealth less than Tk5 lakh, 488 (25.09%) between Tk5 lakh and Tk25 lakh, 208 (10.69%) between Tk25 lakh and Tk50 lakhs, 175 (9%) Tk50 lakhs to Tk1 crore, 374 (19.23%), Tk50 lakh to Tk1 crore, and 335 (17.22%) more than Tk5 crore.
According to this data, there was not a huge economic gap between Awami League candidates and other contenders during the 2008 elections, which were held under the caretaker government. Instead, the phase's revenue was around average.
SHUJAN observed a rise in inequality whenever elections were conducted under a political administration and the major opposition parties abstained from participating. This tendency became noticeable in 2014.
In a written speech, Dilip mentioned that among the 1,945 candidates contesting in the 12th national election, 1,142 (58.71%) are businessmen, 121 (6.22%) are farmers, 237 (12.19%) are employees and 188 (9.67%) lawyers.
Among the total 265 candidates of Bangladesh Awami League, 170 (64.15%) are businessmen.
Here, among the total 1,945 candidates contesting in the 12th national election, the educational qualification is highlighted; 632 candidates (32.49%) are post-graduates and 514 (26.43%) are graduates. Among the total 265 candidates of Bangladesh Awami League, 123 (46.42%) have post-graduate degrees while 102 (38.49%) are graduates.
Additionally, of the 1,945 candidates running in the 12th national parliamentary election, 185 (9.51%) had cases against them at the time of the election, 338 (17.38%) had cases against them previously, and 77 (3.96%) had charges against them previously and still had cases against them.
During the program, eminent jurist Dr Shahdeen Malik addressed the issue of fines related to the torture of journalists, emphasizing that journalists do not receive compensation from the fines imposed.
He also discussed the nature of national elections and the role of parliamentarians in making laws rather than focusing on local development, which should be handled by local governments.
He said: “Unfortunately, we have rendered local government ineffective, leading to candidates making promises about area development even in national elections.”
He suggested that if the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) seeks a candidate's wealth information, it can request a 15-year wealth account of any individual under Section 26 of the Act. Moreover, actions can be initiated in case of any disparities in assets and income.
However, there is a common understanding that the ACC is unlikely to undertake such measures against candidates, he added.
