41 more candidates regain candidacy on third day hearing

The Election Commission (EC) on Monday upheld 41 more appeals against returning officers’ decisions on nomination papers for the 13th National Parliament election, allowing the candidates to regain their eligibility.

EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said a total of 71 appeals were heard on Monday, with 41 accepted, 25 rejected and four kept pending. 

With the latest decisions, 150 candidates have had their candidacy restored over the three days of appeal hearings.

The hearings, held at the EC auditorium in Agargaon under Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, will continue until January 18. 

So far, a total of 645 appeals have been filed challenging returning officers’ decisions.

During the final scrutiny on January 4, a total of 1,842 nomination papers were declared valid and 723 rejected out of 2,568 submissions across 300 constituencies.