Most parties yet to report to EC
Thirty-four out of 38 registered political parties that contested the December 29 parliamentary election are yet to submit their poll expenditure reports to the Election Commission (EC) with the deadline for submission expiring tomorrow.
None of Awami League, BNP, Jatiya Party, Jamaat-e-Islami, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal and Workers Party representing the ninth parliament submitted their election expenditure reports to this day, EC Secretariat officials said yesterday.
Referring to the legal provision, the officials said registration of a party might be cancelled if it fails to submit the report with details of poll expenditure and sources of funds.
The EC Secretariat on Thursday and yesterday sent letters to political parties reminding them of the legal provision following their lukewarm response to submission of the report within the March 31 deadline.
Only four political parties -- Gono Forum, Jatiya Gonotantrik Party, Jatiya Party (Manju) and Islami Oikya Jote -- submitted poll expenditure reports to the EC till yesterday, EC Secretariat sources said.
The EC on January 27 sent letters to the 38 political parties that contested the December 29 parliamentary polls asking them to submit expenditure reports on or before March 31, as the election results of 299 constituencies were published in official gazette on January 1.
Since the poll result of Noakhali-1 was published on January 4, the parties that participated in the election to the constituency will have to submit reports on or before April 14.
As per a provision of the Representation of the People Order (RPO), any political party that contested the parliamentary polls must submit its election expenditure reports within 90 days since the publication of poll results in official gazette.
In the report, a party will have to disclose the sources of its election funds.
EC Secretariat officials said if the parties do not submit reports within the deadline, the commission might extend it for 30 days. The commission is yet to decide on the matter, they added.
If a party fails to submit the report even within the extended deadline, the EC might give it another 15 days to do so imposing a fine on it.
The party's failure to produce the report by the stipulated time might result in cancellation of its registration, which is mandatory for a political party to contest the national polls.
The provision was introduced as part of sweeping electoral reforms made before the ninth parliamentary election to ensure accountability and transparency in collection of election funds and expenditure of political parties.
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