Staff Reporter :
Nomination papers on behalf of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Rahman were collected on Wednesday for the posts of party chairperson and senior vice-chairman respectively. Khaleda Zia’s nominated election agent and BNP Joint-Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed collected the nomination papers for the BNP chief, while the party’s another Joint-Secretary General Mohammad Shahjahan collected nomination papers for Tarique Rahman for the post of senior Vice-Chairman. But no other party man collected the paper for himself.
Ahead of the party’s sixth national council, collection of nomination papers for the two posts began in the party’s Nayapaltan Central Office in the city in the morning. It will continue in the party office also today (Thursday).
Rizvi Ahmed collected Khaleda Zia’s nomination papers in the morning, while Shahjahan did it for Tarique Rahman in the afternoon.
Before receiving the nomination papers, Rizvi Ahmed submitted an authorisation letter with Khaleda Zia’s signature to the returning officer and party Standing Committee member Nazrul Islam Khan as her agent. Assistant Returning Officer and Dhaka district unit BNP president Abdul Mannan was also present at the time.
Earlier on Monday, BNP Standing Committee member and its Election Commissioner Barrister Jamiruddin Sircar announced the schedule for elections to the party Chairperson and Senior Vice-Chairman posts. The election will be held on the day of the party’s national council on March 19. The aspirants will have to submit nominations by March 4. Nominations will be scrutinised on March 5 and the date for withdrawal is March 6.
The party constitution has a practice that the post of the party chairperson should be elected. It was practiced in the past though none contested against Khaleda Zia.
After the latest amendment to the constitution, the post of the Senior Vice-Chairman has been made open, meaning that anyone can contest.
In BNP’s fifth council held in December in 2009, Khaleda Zia was elected chairperson unopposed while Tarique Rahman was made Senior Vice-Chairman. Khaleda Zia has been holding the post since 1984. Many said that the election to the two posts of the party is nothing but a drama, as Khaleda Zia and her son will occupy the posts again. Party insiders said that prior to the sixth national council, Khaleda Zia is going to be elected the party chairperson once again while Tarique Rahman will retain the second coveted post of the party.
A BNP leader said that although the BNP announced the polls schedule for the two posts, no other candidates can be found to submit nominations for the two posts.
