The authorities of Sonali Bank have filed an appeal with the Election Commission to cancel the nomination of BNP's mayoral candidate Kausar Zaman Babla in the Rangpur City Corporation polls, on loan default charges.
Confirming the matter, Rangpur Divisional Election Commissioner Kazi Hasan Ahmed told media that the appeal was filed by an officer of Sonali Bank's Rangpur branch during the scrutiny of nomination papers on Sunday.
Sources said drama unfolded at the Election Commission office after the appeal, as the BNP candidate's lawyer Tariqul Islam immediately produced a six-month stay order by the High Court against the bank's bid to declare him a loan defaulter.
In response, the complainant claimed that Sonali Bank had filed a petition with the High Court against the stay order.
The Election Commission then asked the complainant to submit the relevant documents to support his claim by 5pm.
As the documents were not submitted within the stipulated time, the Election Commission declared the nomination of the BNP candidate valid and fixed Thursday for a hearing.
Returning Officer Subhash Chandra Sarker confirmed that Babla had submitted a copy of the High Court stay order to the commission.
Although bank authorities have failed to produce any documents to support their petition against the stay order, the court granted them until December 3 to mount a challenge.
Subhash also mentioned that 10 candidates for councillor and independent mayoral candidate Mahmudul Hasan Boni pleaded against the scrapping of their nomination papers during scrutiny.
The Election Commission will hear their petitions on Wednesday and Thursday.
The Rangpur City Corporation polls are slated for December 21.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
