The Election Commission yesterday sent letters to all 40 registered political parties, seeking audit reports of their annual incomes and expenditures by July 31.
“We have sent the letters to remind the political parties to submit the reports by the deadline,” a senior assistant secretary told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday seeking anonymity.
No letter was sent to Jamaat-e-Islami as the party’s registration was declared illegal by the High Court last August and an appeal against the High Court ruling is pending at the Appellate Division.
According to the Representation of the People Order, all registered parties have to submit annual audit reports certified by registered chartered accountants. A party’s registration can be cancelled if it fails to submit audit reports for three consecutive years.
In their audit reports submitted last year, both the BNP and the Jatiya Party showed higher expenditures than incomes in 2012, while the Awami League reported a surplus.
The ruling party reported the highest income and expenditure – Tk10 crore and Tk9 crore – followed by its key ally JaPa with Tk4.8 crore and Tk4.9 crore, respectively.
The JaPa's income and expenditure were double the figures the BNP earned and spent in 2012. The BNP showed Tk1.8 crore as annual income and over Tk2.26 crore as expenditure.
