Compliance with registration conditions: EC starts reviewing political parties
The Election Commission has started reviewing political parties to check if they are complying with their registration conditions.
The EC sent letters to all registered political parties and the EC asked them to respond by November 30, mentioning how the parties were complying with the conditions.
Regarding collecting information on the parties' compliance with the Representation of the People Order (RPO), the EC fell behind for at least two months.
While unveiling its work plan for the 12th national polls, on September 14, the EC set a deadline to collect information on political parties by September.
The process of reviewing the political parties is taking place centring the next national election which is likely to be held in late December 2023 or early January 2024.
"We have sent letters to all registered political parties," said Ashok Kumar Debnath, additional secretary to the EC.
Election Commissioner Md Alamgir said the political parties will need to provide information to the EC by November 30.
While asked about the delay, Alamgir said after collecting the information on whether the political parties are complying with the conditions on what they got their registrations, the EC will review these and the whole process will be complete by May 2023.
"We hope that the whole work will be completed by that time," he reiterated.
Responding to a question on whether the EC has the capacity to verify the information provided by the political parties, Alamgir said, "It is not that the EC does not have the capacity at all. There are officials of the commission at the district and upazila levels. Information will be verified through them."
There are 39 political parties registered with the EC.
The EC has been providing registration to political parties since 2008 in line with The Representation of the People Order, 1972.
For getting registration, a political party needs to meet at least one criterion out of three.
The first condition being a political party securing at least one seat with its electoral symbol in any parliamentary election held since the independence of Bangladesh.
The second criterion being securing five percent of the total votes cast in the constituencies in which its candidates took part in any of the aforesaid parliamentary elections.
The third clause is that the 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 of 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.
In the letter, the EC sought information on whether the parties are abiding by the law and if the parties have ensured 33 percent women leadership at their central and other committees and others.
If the EC finds that political parties are not abiding by the law, it can cancel their registration, said the EC officials.
Since 2008, a total of 44 political parties got registration and five political parties' registrations were cancelled.
Since 2018, Oikyabaddho Nagarik Andolan, Pragatashil Ganatantrik Party and Jatiya Ganatantrik Party lost their registrations as they failed to comply conditions of getting registration.
Besides, registration of the Freedom Party was cancelled in 2009 as it failed to provide the party charter.
Jamaat's registration as a political party was announced illegal by High Court in 2013. Following the verdict, the EC cancelled Jamaat's registration in October 2018.
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