EC cancels 82 candidates’ nominations over loan defaults

The Election Commission (EC) has cancelled the nominations of 82 candidates seeking to contest the upcoming parliamentary elections due to their loan default status.

The rejected nominations due to loan defaults account for 11 percent of the total 724 nominations the EC has cancelled, central bank officials said today.

The EC cancelled the nominations based on information from the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) of Bangladesh Bank (BB).

Detailed information on the loan defaulters could not be obtained immediately.

Some 2,574 candidates submitted nominations for the 13th parliamentary election, scheduled to take place in February this year.

Of them, 31 candidates obtained stay orders from courts barring banks from declaring them loan defaulters, while 2,461 candidates were found to be default-free, BB officials said.

Earlier in November, the CIB began updating loan-related data to ensure candidates' records were accurate ahead of nomination submissions.

Under election rules, a person whose loan is not in regular status at least seven days before filing nomination papers is deemed ineligible to contest the election.

Scrutiny of nominations began on December 30 and ended yesterday. Appeals against the returning officers' decisions can be filed with the Election Commission.