Interview of BNP aspirants begins

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) started interview of the aspirants for the 11th parliamentary polls scheduled for December 30.
On the first day on Sunday, nomination seekers from the constituencies under Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions appeared before the party's parliamentary board.
The party's high-ups interviewed them at the Gulshan office of imprisoned chairperson Khaleda Zia.
The programme kicked off around 9:30am with the interview of Yunus Sheikh who sought nomination for the Panchagarh-1 constituency.
The board comprised members of the party's national standing committee.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, Barrister Jamir Uddin Sirkar, Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, Rafiqul Islam Miah, Gayeswar Chandra Roy, Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan and Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury were present.
Tarique Rahman, the embattled party's acting chairperson, also joined in the session through videoconferencing from London.
He has been the nationalist party's acting chairman since his mother, Ms Zia, was sentenced to jail in a graft case in February.
Mr Rahman, who has been abroad for a decade, was awarded 17 years in jail over two graft cases.
He also received a life sentence in the August 21 grenade attack case.
Coming out of the interview board, several aspirants told the media that Mr Rahman talked to them.
The interviewees exchanged greetings with the party's acting chairperson.
He asked the interviewees the reason for their seeking BNP's nomination and their role in the party in the past 10 to 12 years, among other queries.
Dr AZM Zahid Hossain, secretary general of Doctors Association of Bangladesh, said, "Whoever gets nomination, all leaders and activists will get united for the candidate."
He collected nomination papers for Dinajpur-6 and Mymensingh-4 constituencies.
There are eight districts under Rangpur division -- Thakurgaon, Rangpur, Panchagarh, Nilphamari, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram, Gaibandha and Dinajpur.
The number of constituencies in the division is 33.
According to party insiders, some 250 people submitted nomination forms for the constituencies.
Meanwhile, Rajshahi division has 39 constituencies under Bogura, Chapainawabganj, Joypurhat, Naogaon, Natore, Pabna, Rajshahi and Sirajganj districts.
BNP leaders said around 330 people submitted nomination papers for the parliamentary seats in Rajshahi division.
The interview will continue for four days until November 21.
The nomination seekers for the constituencies under Barishal (9:00am to 1:30pm) and Khulna divisions (from 2:30pm) will be interviewed today (Monday).
The aspirants of Chattogram, Cumilla (proposed) and Sylhet divisions will meet on November 21.
The interview of aspirants from Mymensingh, Faridpur (proposed) and Dhaka divisions will also be taken the same day.
The BNP started selling nomination papers at its Nayapaltan central office on November 12 to continue till 9:00pm of November 16, with two days' extension.
The Election Commission has fixed November 28 as the deadline for nomination submissions, December 02 for scrutiny and December 09 the last date for withdrawal of candidacy.

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