Election officials have struck down Nagorik Oikko President Mahmudur Rahman Manna's bid to run for parliament, reports bdnews24.com.
Returning Officer and Deputy Commissioner Toufiqur Rahman announced the decision on Friday afternoon following the scrutiny of his nomination papers for the Bogura-2 (Shibganj) constituency.
He cited three issues with Manna's affidavit as reasons for rejection.
According to him, the affidavit requires signatures from both the candidate and the lawyer on the same day, but in Manna's case, the lawyer signed a day earlier.
He also said Manna failed to submit documents related to cases in which he claimed acquittal, while errors were found in the declaration of assets attached to the nomination papers.
The decision comes just days after the Supreme Court cleared the way for Manna to contest the election.
The apex court suspended a High Court order that had previously barred him from running because he was named in the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) list of loan defaulters.
Manna had appealed the High Court decision in the Appellate Division and, simultaneously, requested the rescheduling of his loan and the removal of his name from the CIB list.
The Appellate Division Chamber Bench, headed by Justice Md Rezaul Haque, suspended the High Court order on Sunday, temporarily removing Manna's name from the defaulter list and resolving the legal hurdle related to his loans.
According to court and bank documents, on Dec 10 last year, Islami Bank's Bogura Borogola branch issued a notice seeking recovery of Tk 380.48 million from Afaku Cold Storage Ltd, a company chaired by Manna.
The notice, sent to Manna and two of his business partners, asked that the outstanding amount be cleared by Dec 18.
Afaku Cold Storage received approval for an investment of Tk 220 million in 2010 but later failed to make regular payments of profits, charges and penalties, leading to the accumulation of the outstanding sum, according to the bank. Manna owns a 50 percent stake in the company, with the remaining shares held by its Managing Director ABM Nazmul Kadir Shajahan Chowdhury, and Director Ismat Ara Laizu.
Islami Bank's lawyer M Abdul Qayyum said Manna's loan rescheduling led the Appellate Division to suspend his name from the CIB defaulter list, meaning that the loan issue should no longer prevent him from contesting the election.
Despite this, errors and inconsistencies in submitted affidavit have now blocked the former DUCSU vice-president's candidacy.
3 OTHER NOMINATIONS CANCELLED
Apart from Manna, three other candidates in Bogura-2 have had their nominations rejected. The nomination of Jamal Uddin of Islami Andolan Bangladesh has been kept pending. Returning Officer Toufiqur said the nomination of former MP Shariful Islam Zinnah of the Jatiya Party was cancelled for failing to submit an asset declaration.
Nomination papers submitted by Selim Sarkar of Gono Odhikar Parishad and another independent candidate, Rezaul Karim Talu, were also rejected due to errors.
The nominations of BNP candidate Mir Shahe Alam and Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Abul Azad Md Shahaduzzaman were declared valid.
