Barrister Farzana Sharmin Putul has become the only female Member of Parliament (MP) from the 72 parliamentary constituencies across the 16 districts of the northern divisions of Rajshahi and Rangpur.
In the recently concluded 13th National Parliamentary Election, she won the Natore-1 (Lalpur-Bagatipara) constituency as a candidate of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
At 41, Barrister Putul is also the youngest female MP in the country. She is the daughter of the late BNP leader and former State Minister for Youth and Sports Fazlur Rahman Patal.
After 18 years, she has reclaimed her father’s former constituency by securing the party nomination and winning the election.
Fazlur Rahman Patal had served as an adviser to BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and was elected MP from this constituency four consecutive times in 1991, 1996, and 2001. He served as State Minister for Youth and Sports from 2001 to 2006. The seat slipped from BNP in 2008 when he was defeated by Jatiya Party candidate MA Talha, and later in 2014, Awami League candidate Abul Kalam Azad was elected unopposed. Patal passed away in 2015.
In the 2018 election, his wife received the party nomination but lost to Awami League candidate Shahidul Islam Bakul. BNP did not participate in the 2024 election, and no member of the Patal family contested that year.
By profession, Barrister Putul is a Supreme Court lawyer. She currently serves as Special Assistant to the BNP Chairperson’s Foreign Affairs Advisory Committee, is a member of the Human Rights Committee, and is part of the party’s Media Cell.
According to the election results, she secured 102,726 votes. Her nearest rival, Jamaat-nominated Abul Kalam Azad, received 90,568 votes, while independent candidate Taiful Islam Tipu came third with 73,173 votes, contesting under the Pitcher symbol.
Putul’s victory, however, was not without challenges. She faced family rivalry over party nomination, as her elder brother, Dr. Yasir Arshad Rajan, had also sought the nomination. She also faced strong competition from Taiful Islam Tipu, a former BNP central co-office secretary, who was expelled from all party posts for contesting against the party’s Sheaf of Paddy symbol in defiance of party directives.
During the campaign, Barrister Putul reportedly faced cyberbullying. It was also alleged that some party leaders supported the rebel candidate, including former Bagatipara Upazila Chairman Jahangir Hossain, municipal mayor Shariful Islam Lelin, former Gopalpur Municipality Mayor of Lalpur Munjurul Islam Bimal, among others.
Overcoming these adversities, Barrister Putul successfully crossed the electoral hurdle.
After her victory, she said, “BNP honored the people of this constituency by nominating me, and the people, in return, have honored the party by electing me as MP. I will not judge anyone based on who voted or who did not vote for me. I want to work with everyone.”
She added, “Not only for this constituency or Natore district, but if given the opportunity, I am ready to work for the country.”
