As the Election Commission’s scrutiny has been completed, it is evident that 33 Awami League candidates will be declared elected uncontested in the January 5 elections. But the number may increase if Jatiya Party candidates withdraw their nominations in line with the party chairman’s announcement.
According to the EC report, only two candidates are contesting in 103 parliamentary seats, where most of contenders are from the Awami League and HM Ershad-led Jatiya Party.
So far, seven Jatiya Party candidates have applied for withdrawing nominations.
An official said the commission had not collected applications for withdrawing nomination papers from the field-level. “We will start the process from Sunday [today].”
Ershad backtracked from the polls only a day after joining the polls-time government and announcing MP aspirants. He has asked party leaders to tender resignations and withdraw their nomination papers. However, he later agreed to join polls if the schedule was changed and participation of all parties was ensured.
The ruling Awami League and its allies are determined to hold the election on January 5 while the opposition alliance has been observing blockades and hartals since the announcement of the schedule on November 25.
After the beginning of parliamentary democracy in 1991, no candidate was elected uncontested in the elections except for the 1996 one. That election was boycotted by all parties except for the BNP and some other small parties.
In the much-disputed elections held on February 15 that year, 49 candidates of the BNP were elected uncontested. The BNP then won 279 seats out of 290. Elections to 10 parliamentary constituencies were not held due to unavoidable circumstances.
In the January 22, 2006 election, 18 candidates of the BNP were elected uncontested. But the polls were cancelled after the declaration of emergency.
A senior official of the EC yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that if the election was held in participation of all parties, there would be no uncontested candidates.
