Candidates contesting the upcoming by-elections in the Sherpur-3 and Bogura-6 parliamentary constituencies will have 23 days to campaign before voters go to the polls.
According to officials from the Bangladesh Election Commission, candidates will officially begin their campaign activities on March 16 after the allocation of electoral symbols. The information was confirmed by officials from the commission’s election management wing on Saturday (March 7).
Sherpur-3 Constituency
In the Sherpur-3 seat, nomination papers have been submitted by several candidates representing different political parties. Among them are Abu Taleb Md. Saifuddin from Islami Andolon Bangladesh, Md. Masudur Rahman from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Md. Mahmudul Haque Rubel from Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Md. Mizanur Rahman from Socialist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist), and independent candidate Md. Aminul Islam.
Election officials said the scrutiny of nomination papers for this constituency has already been completed and the process of receiving appeals is currently underway.
Voting for this seat was postponed during the 13th National Parliamentary Election of Bangladesh held on February 12 after the death of a valid candidate. Following the incident, the Election Commission announced a new election schedule.
Bogura-6 Constituency
For the Bogura-6 seat, nomination papers have been submitted by Md. Abidur Rahman from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Md. Rezaul Karim Badsha from Bangladesh Nationalist Party, and Md. Al Alim Talukder from the Bangladesh Development Party.
The returning officer has already completed the verification of their nomination papers.
In the February 12 national election, Tarique Rahman, chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, won the Bogura-6 seat. However, as the law does not allow one person to hold two parliamentary seats simultaneously, he retained the Dhaka-17 constituency and vacated Bogura-6. As a result, the Election Commission declared the seat vacant and announced a by-election schedule.
Election Schedule
According to the announced timetable, appeals will be resolved by March 11, while the deadline for withdrawing candidacy is March 14. Electoral symbols will be allocated on March 15, and campaigning will begin on March 16.
Candidates will be able to conduct their campaigns until 7:30 a.m. on April 7. The by-elections for both constituencies are scheduled to take place on April 9.
The Election Commission has stated that all necessary preparations are being taken to ensure a free, fair and peaceful election.
