On Monday morning, nomination aspirants from all over the country came to BNP office in Naya Paltan to collect forms. At one point, the road in front of the office became clogged. The nomination form sales began with the form collected on behalf of imprisoned BNP chairperson, Khaleda Zia.
The BNP nomination form is Tk 5000 and another Tk 25000 has to be submitted with the filled in form. Nomination seeker from Dhaka-14, former commissioner Masud Khan, came with hundreds of workers and activists. In the same manner, nomination seekers for Munshiganj-1, Bhola-2, Dhaka-7 came to collect forms with hordes of supporters.
BNP’s central joint administrative secretary, Abdus Salam Azad, said, “If the election is free and fair then 20 party alliance and Jatiya Oikya Front will win by a huge margin.”
We hope to get a free, fair and neutral election under PM Sheikh Hasina, he added.
BNP nomination forms will be sold till 4 pm and by 12 pm, more than 100 forms were sold.
“If there isn’t a conducive environment for elections, then BNP will reconsider its decision to take part in the upcoming national polls,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
BNP workers from all around are seen to buy monograms containing the images of Khaleda Zia and late president Ziaur Rahman.
BNP’s publicity in charge, Shahihuddin Chowdhury Annie, says, “Despite so much repression the workers and activists have come to collect nomination papers.”