EC revokes Progressive Democratic Party’s registration
2nd phase of municipalities election in mid January
The Election Commission has cancelled the registration of Progressive Democratic Party as a political party as it failed to meet the condition of maintaining the registration.
"Election Commission has revoked the registration of Progressive Democratic Party," EC Senior Secretary Md Alamgir told The Daily Star after a commission meeting held this evening at its office in the capital.
"We cancelled the registration as PDP is failing to meet the conditions of maintaining their registration. Our probe has found that they do not have sufficient infrastructures like offices at district and other levels. They do not have sufficient number of committee members," he said.
"The party has not even held councils in years," Md Alamgir said,
The Daily Star made several phone calls to PDP Secretary General Principal MA Hossain but found his mobile phone switched off. Party Chairman Ferdous Ahmed Qureshi died in September this year.
PDP was formed in 2007 during the military backed interim government and there are rumours that the then rulers supported the party.
According to the EC, a party needs to set up a functional central office, by whatever name it may be called, with a central committee, having offices at least in one-third administrative districts, and offices at least in 100 upazilas or metropolitan thanas. And the party must have a minimum 200 voters as its members in each upazila.
There are 41 registered political parties under EC.
Alamgir while talking to reporters after the meeting said that municipalities election will be held in four phases. Schedule for second phase of election will be announced soon.
He said that election of second, third and fourth phases will take place in mid-January, end of January and mid-February respectively.
On an average 60 municipalities will go for voting the each of three phases. Elections to the 30 municipalities in each phase will take place using Electronic Voting Machines.
On November 22, EC announced schedule for first phase of elections to the 25 municipalities setting the election date on December 28.
Alamgir said that EC will not charge any money from expatriate Bangladeshis while giving them NID cards.