The ruling Awami League has started the process to give its initial green light to candidates competing for it in the coming 11th Parliamentary Election.
Confirmation letters will be sent to 230 candidates for the 300 seats, its General Secretary Obaidul Quader said on Sunday (Nov 25).
Speaking to the media at the party chief’s Dhanmondi offices, he, however, said that letters will be sent to more than one candidate in some seats for now as ‘alternative’, which he says will be finalised before the deadline to pull out from the race.
“The names for 300 candidates, including those of the Grand Alliance, will be officially announced on Tuesday,” said Quader.
The party began distributing the confirmation letters for the candidates on Sunday morning at the Awami League’s central offices at Bangabandhu Avenue.
According to the schedule, the 11th parliamentary election will be held on Dec 30. Candidates can submit their papers until Dec 28. They will be scrutinised by the Election Commission on Dec 2. Candidates will have until Dec 9 to withdraw. The parties will have to decide on how to divvy up the constituencies by then.
The Awami League had run 247 candidates during the 10th parliamentary election, which had been boycotted by the BNP. The Jatiya Party had run separately and put up 86 candidates. The Awami League had won 234 seats, while the Jatiya Party won 34.
During the 9th parliamentary election, the Awami League-led 14 Party Alliance allied itself with the Jatiya Party. A total of 264 Awami League candidates had run for office alongside Jatiya Party candidates at 49 seats. The Awami League had won 230 seats, while the Jatiya Party had won 27.