31 Loan-Defaulter Candidates Survive, Half from BNP

Despite being identified as loan defaulters, 31 candidates have successfully secured the validation of their nomination papers by returning officers, following court orders. Among these, 15 are nominees of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), while 11 are independent candidates. The remaining nominees represent other political parties.

These candidates were flagged as defaulters in the Centralised Information Bureau (CIB) report of Bangladesh Bank, having defaulted on loans taken from various banks and financial institutions across the country. However, due to interim stays granted by higher courts, they were allowed to contest the upcoming parliamentary elections.

In this election cycle, a total of 2,565 nomination papers were submitted across 300 constituencies nationwide. Of these, 82 candidacies were annulled solely on the grounds of loan default. Among the disqualified candidates, 28 were independents, three were BNP nominees, and two belonged to Jamaat-e-Islami. Other affected candidates included nominees from the Jatiya Party, Communist Party of Bangladesh, and the Islami Andolan Bangladesh (Charmonai Pir faction). In total, 723 nomination papers were invalidated for various reasons.

Between 30 December and 4 January, the scrutiny process was conducted by 69 returning officers across the country. While 723 papers were rejected, 1,842 candidates were cleared as valid. All candidates have the opportunity to appeal these decisions until 9 January.

Under the Representation of the People Order (RPO), loan defaulters are barred from contesting elections. According to amendments during the caretaker government, a candidate’s parliamentary membership can also be revoked if their defaulter status is confirmed post-election. Voting for the 13th parliamentary elections is scheduled for 12 February.

BNP and Independent Candidates Cleared by Court Orders

Disqualifications Among Other Parties

The disqualified candidates included:

Jatiya Party: 10

Islami Andolan Bangladesh: 6

Ganadhikar Parishad: 6

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD): 3

Liberal Democratic Party: 3

Communist Party: 2

Bangladesh Labour Party: 2

Others (various parties): 6

In constituencies where BNP candidates were disqualified, substitute party nominees were allowed to contest. For example, in Jessore-4, the nomination of T.S. Ayub was invalidated, but another BNP candidate, Matiar Rahman Faraji, was cleared. Similar substitutions occurred in Comilla-10 and Chattogram-11.

Independent and smaller party candidates were also affected, including 28 independents and numerous nominees from parties such as Bangladesh Supreme Party, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis, Bangladesh Islami Front, and NPP. Their nominations were rejected due to loan default records, although in some cases, payments after the designated date cleared their status.

This election has thus highlighted the delicate balance between legal rulings, electoral scrutiny, and financial accountability in Bangladeshi politics, with 31 loan-defaulter candidates still in the race due to interim court orders.