Tarique Rahman now voter of Dhaka-17 constituency

The Election Commission (EC) has accepted Tarique Rahman’s application to be included in the voter list. He is now a voter in Dhaka-17 and will also be a candidate from this constituency in the upcoming election.

Returning to the country after 17 years in exile, Tarique Rahman on Saturday completed the application and formalities for registering his name in the voter list and obtaining a national identity card. The EC had stated that a decision on the matter would be made at the commission’s meeting that day.

The Election Commission’s Director (Public Relations), Ruhul Amin Mallik, told reporters this afternoon that Tarique Rahman’s inclusion in the voter list has been approved by the Election Commission.

Before Tarique Rahman returned from London, the BNP had stated that he would complete the necessary formalities to become a voter on 27 December. Accordingly, yesterday afternoon, Tarique Rahman went to the Election Training Institute building in Agargaon. There, he completed the processes of having his photo taken, providing ten fingerprints, iris (eye) scan, and recording his signature. Election Commission Secretary Akhtar Ahmed was present at the time. After returning to Dhaka, Tarique Rahman went to his residence in Gulshan, where he submitted his application to become a voter.

The Election Commission has already finalised the voter list for the upcoming 13th parliamentary elections. However, the voter list law states that the EC can include the name of any eligible person in the voter list at any time. As a result, Tarique Rahman’s application had to be approved by the EC. That approval was granted today.

During the 1/11 caretaker government, Bangladesh prepared its first voter list with photographs in 2008. BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s eldest son, Tarique Rahman, had been released from prison and left Bangladesh for London on 11 September 2008. Being abroad, he was not included in the voter list at that time. Subsequently, during the Awami League’s rule, he did not return to the country and remained unregistered as a voter.

After the July uprising last year, which led to the removal of the Awami League from power, the interim government is moving toward the 13th parliamentary elections scheduled for next February. The election schedule was announced on December 11, with voting set for 12 February.
Tarique Rahman will contest as the "Dhaner Shish" (Paddy Sheaf) candidate not only in the Dhaka-17 constituency but also in his ancestral area, Bogura Sadar (Bogura-6). Nomination papers have already been collected on his behalf.